


Delta Emerald

by magumarashi



Category: Pocket Monsters: Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire | Pokemon Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire Versions, Pocket Monsters: Ruby & Sapphire & Emerald | Pokemon Ruby Sapphire Emerald Versions
Genre: F/M, Slow Burn, it is going to be a very long time before the pairing this is tagged as gets together lmao, there may occasionally be strong language but otherwise this is rated G, there's a bunch more characters but im not gonna tag em all lmao
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-11-22
Updated: 2016-08-07
Packaged: 2018-03-15 15:06:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 27
Words: 46,471
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3451619
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/magumarashi/pseuds/magumarashi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sixteen-year-old Mae just moved to Hoenn from Johto, and after one month she's already bored with Littleroot town. After a chance encounter with the local Pokemon professor, Mae finds herself babysitting a very peculiar Pokemon...</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Introduction

**Author's Note:**

> Delta Emerald and the [Hoenn Memories](https://archiveofourown.org/series/216803) series are meant to be read as complements, and can be read in any order. HM is chronologically first. Mae starts her journey six years after Laura started hers, and Hoenn has changed quite a bit in that time.
> 
> Chapters 1-27 were originally posted to my wordpress [here.](https://magustorytime.wordpress.com/category/delta-emerald/)

“…It took a beating, but Dragonite is down! What an upset! Both the defender and the challenger are down to their last Pokémon, and it looks like this kid from Pallet town might actually have a shot at becoming Indigo League Champion!”

“What?!” Mae practically leaped out of her seat, “Someone’s gonna beat Lance? No way… that never happens! Lance is the best there is!”

“Calm down, honey,” Mae’s mother said over her shoulder. Lunch was cooking on the stove, and their tiny kitchen was filled with the smell of simmering vegetables.

The Indigo League Open had been airing on television for several days now, and sixteen-year-old Mae has been glued to every minute. Every year, the Indigo League opened its doors to qualified challengers from Kanto and Johto, each vying for the title of Elite Four or Champion–and every year, the terrifyingly strong Elite Four sent every challenger packing before they could even reach the final round. But this year was different: a kid from Pallet Town had bulldozed his way past the Elite Four, and seemed to be whittling away at the Champion himself. It was a feat that had half the world watching–and Mae wasn’t about to miss a second of it.

“Mae, lunch is almost ready,” Mae’s mother called from the kitchen, “Come help me set the table.”

“But _mom_ , this is the most important part!” Mae called back, “Lance is on the ropes–this Gary Oak guy might win!”

“You’ve been watching for four days, Mae.”

“ _Mo~om!!”_

_“Fine.”_

Mae was on the edge of her seat, fists clenched, eyes riveted to the screen. Gary’s final Pokémon was Alakazam; Lance’s was Aerodactyl. The two Pokémon executed their trainers’ attacks with a skill and focus that made them look as though they were dancing. Alakazam moved gracefully, shifting position only to avoid Aerodactyl’s attacks; the fossil Pokémon moved erratically, striking where it thought Alakazam would expect it least.

_This is what Pokémon battles are all about,_ Mae found herself thinking, _Two strategies colliding on the field, both Pokémon in synch with their trainer, with either side just as likely to win. What I wouldn’t give to have a battle like that someday…_

“Psychic!” Gary called out.

“Aerodactyl, Ancient Power!”

Aerodactyl glowed blue, using an innate power to carve huge boulders out of the battlefield and hurl them at its opponent. Alakazam caught the boulders with its own psychic power and pushed back. The two Pokémon began a sort of tug of war, neither side budging an inch. It came down to whose power could hold out the longest–and with a _crack_ and a wave of debris, Aerodactyl’s gave out first. The boulders flew back into it, knocking it out of the air. The fossil Pokémon hit the ground with a resounding crash, the boulders falling to the ground around it and shattering.

The crowd erupted into a roaring frenzy.

“Trainers, I don’t believe this!” the MC shouted above the din of the crowd, “Aerodactyl is unable to battle–Gary Oak of Pallet Town is the winner!”

“No way!!” Mae nearly fell out of her chair; she was just as fired up as if she’d been in the spectator seats, “Mom, Lance lost!”

“I heard,” said Mae’s mother.

“He hasn’t lost once since he’s been Champion!” said Mae, “This is unreal! He had a team full of dragons, and Gary didn’t have any Ice-type Pokémon!”

“Well, it’s like your father always says,” said Mae’s mother, coming into the living room carrying a tray of stir fry, “Type matchups are important, but what’s most important is raising your Pokémon in a balanced way.”

Mae ran to take her seat at the table–the closing ceremonies wouldn’t be nearly as interesting as the battle had been–and sat down across from her mother.

“I wonder if he’ll end up taking the title,” said Mae as her mother served her some  of the stir fry, “If he does, he’ll be the youngest Champion in history!”

“Wasn’t Lance twenty when he became champion?” Mae’s mother put her hand to her chin, “That was about ten years ago, I think… I remember it because it was when your father first got that position at Goldenrod Gym. The league made a big deal about it–Lance being so young, I mean.”

“Yeah, Lance was twenty, but Gary’s only _sixteen_ ,” said Mae, “It said so in the prelims! He was one of the youngest challengers they’d ever had.”

“That young?” Mae’s mother seemed concerned, “I wonder how the Elite Four would feel, having to answer to someone your age…”

“Bet they’re not too happy about it,” Mae forked some stir fry into her mouth and chewed thoughtfully, “I know Dad wouldn’t let me boss him around for a second, even if I _was_ Champion.”

“A safe bet,” Mae’s mother laughed, “I know _I’m_ a bit relieved to be out of Johto. Apparently Hoenn had a teenage champion a while back, and the news reports were just wild. I’m certainly glad that’s all settled, but I can’t help but worry a bit for Johto now.”

“Hoenn had a teenage champion?” Mae paused mid-bite.

“Yes, a number of years ago. The power really went to the girl’s head, the poor thing. It was all over the news when you were younger.”

“Huh…” Mae rarely paid attention to the news. Pokémon tournaments were about all she cared about on TV.

“But I think she bowed out recently, and someone more responsible took her place,” Mae’s mother continued, “Thank goodness. I was seriously worried when I heard your father accepted the job in Petalburg, you know. But I’m glad things worked out.”

“Oh.” Mae picked at the rest of her meal. As excited as she was about the prospect of a record-setting young Champion, she was still somewhat bummed about Lance losing. She’d really looked up to Lance growing up: as the face of the Indigo League, he was the most well-known trainer in Johto. Not only was he personable, but he had a way with Pokémon, and his battle style had been unmatched for ten years. Not to mention he was handsome–Mae would be lying to herself if she said she hadn’t had a crush on him when she was younger.

“Oh, before I forget,” said Mae’s mother, “I ordered something at the mart in Oldale, and it was delivered there today. I have some things I need to do for work, so can I bother you to pick my package up for me?”

“Yeah, no problem,” said Mae. Any excuse to get out of the house was good enough for her. She finished her stir fry, cleared her plate, and ran upstairs to get her fanny pack. Within ten minutes she was out the door and on her way to Oldale.

* * *

It had been about a month since Mae had moved to Hoenn with her family. It had been hard at first to get used to living in Hoenn–the summer heat was more intense here than it had been even in Johto, and the small-town atmosphere of Littleroot made her feel somewhat lethargic. She’d grown up in the exciting bustle of Goldrenrod city, where amenities and entertainment were only a bike ride away. But in Littleroot, there was next to nothing to do. The only notable attraction in the whole town was the newly-built Pokémon Lab, where the region’s resident professor did his work. Oldale nearby wasn’t much more interesting; it had some specialty stores and a Pokémon Center, but not much else.

Petalburg, the city where her father was Gym Leader, sounded like a bigger, more interesting city–but it was farther away than Oldale, and the path to it was likely filled with wild Pokémon. She could make it to Oldale by herself if she walked quickly and made lots of noise to scare Pokémon away, but getting to Petalburg alone was a different story. Her father made the trek every day with his Pokémon, and he knew better than anyone that Route 102 was dangerous to walk unarmed.

With nothing to do and nowhere interesting to go, Mae had spent most of the last month watching international tournaments on TV, and the Indigo Open had been the one she’d been looking forward to most. As a kid, she’d dreamed of participating someday… perhaps that was a dream for another time.

Mae had barely stepped onto Route 101 when the sound of a commotion reached her ears. A man was yelling up ahead, and it sounded like he was running from something. Mae froze in her tracks. Should she turn back and try again later?

_What if he needs help, though? I don’t wanna just stand around doing nothing…_

Her determination to help overcame her fears of what lay ahead, and she broke into a run toward the source of the ruckus.

After turning a corner and pushing past some bushes, she found a clearing--and the man who’d been screaming. He was a portly, bearded man who looked to be in his mid thirties, and like most Hoenn residents wore shorts and sandals. However, he was also wearing a lab coat. _How strange_ , Mae thought. _Is he a scientist? What’s he doing wearing a lab coat in the field?_

She had little time to wonder on this. The scientist was being chased by three small doglike Pokémon. They were fairly intimidating for their size, baring sharp fangs and sounding angry barks. Any entry-level trainer probably could have fended them off easily, but the man didn’t seem to have any Pokémon.

“Help me!!” the man cried. Then, taking notice of Mae, added, “You over there! Please! Help!”

“Uh!!” Mae called back, “What should I do?”

“I dropped my bag over there!” the man shouted, pointing vaguely to Mae’s side of the clearing, “In it are three Pokéballs--grab one and help me out!”

Mae looked towards where the man had pointed. A brown messenger bag lay forgotten in the grass. Mae dove for it and nearly tore it open. As promised, three Pokéballs waited inside. Mae looked them over, not sure which to use. None of them were labeled.

“Well, I’ll just pick one!” she said, grabbing the center ball, “Go, Pokémon! Go get those Poochyena!”

Mae chucked the ball into the fray, and it opened in a flash of light. From it popped a small, orange bird: a Pokémon Mae had never seen before. Around its neck was tied a mahogany beaded necklace with a red tassel.

“Now what?” said Mae, “I don’t know what attacks it knows!”

“Ember, I can use ember!” said the Pokémon.

“Alright, use Ember! …Wait a minute, did you just--!?”

The Pokémon opened its beak and spewed a stream of small, hot flames at the pack of Poochyena. The dog Pokémon yelped in surprise; two of them tore off into the bushes, nursing burns as they went, while the third remained. It turned on the bird Pokémon and growled.

“Okay, now use Ember again!” said Mae.

“You got it!” said the bird Pokémon. It repeated its attack, spraying Poochyena with more flames. The dog Pokémon let out a whine and took a step backward. It contemplated making another attack, but turned on its heel and bolted away after its friends. The bird Pokémon puffed itself up in satisfaction, and turned around and nodded to Mae.

“Phew! That was close!” said the scientist. He brushed himself off, “Thanks a lot there, er…”

“Mae. My name’s Mae.”

“Mae! Cool. You can call me Professor Birch,” the man responded, “I was in the tall grass studying wild Pokémon when those three jumped me. If you hadn’t come by, I would’ve been in real trouble. Thanks a lot.”

_So this is the local professor_ , Mae thought, _I don’t know why, but I expected someone older…_

“No problem,” said Mae, “You’re not hurt, are you?”

“Nah, just a few scratches,” the professor rubbed the back of his head, “Lucky me! Anyway, this isn’t really a good place for us to chat. Why don’t we head back to my lab? I have to thank you for helping me out.”

“Actually, I’m on an errand right now…” said Mae.

“Ah, that’s fine,” said the professor, “Just come on by later. Come on, Torchic, let’s head back.”

“No way!” said the bird Pokémon. It ran around behind Mae’s legs, “I wanna stay out here and battle more!”

“Um, professor…” said Mae, “Am I hearing things, or did Torchic just…?”

“You’re not hearing things,” said Birch, “That Torchic is one of three very special Pokémon. I can explain more at the lab later; I don’t wanna take any more time out of your errand. Come on, Torchic. Here, Mae, hand me his Pokéball--!”

“Mae, don’t do it!” said Torchic, “I don’t wanna hang out with him, he’s boring! But you’re cool! I wanna hang out with you!”

“Ouch…” said Birch, “Well, fine. You can keep an eye on him for a bit, Mae--just bring him back to the lab when you’re done with your errand.”

“Sure!” said Mae, “All right, Torchic. Let’s walk together.”

“Aw yeah!” said Torchic, “Mae’s the best!”

The professor let out a sigh and picked his bag up off the ground.

“I’ll see you two later,” he said, turning and heading back for Littleroot. Mae looked down at Torchic, and the bird Pokémon returned her gaze.

“Shall we? Oldale’s not that far,” she said, “I’ve been there a few times before.”

“Yeah, let’s go!” Torchic ran ahead as fast as his tiny legs would carry him, “I’ll take out any Pokémon that get in the way! I’ll give ‘em all the one-two, like this! Hiyah!”

Torchic tried to mime kicking an opponent, but he tripped and fell flat on his face. He was quick to right himself, however, and checked to see if Mae had noticed. Mae giggled.

“I bet they won’t know what hit ‘em,” she said teasingly, “Come on, let’s keep walking.”


	2. The Talking Pokemon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mae completes her errand and returns to Littleroot to give Torchic back to the professor. Birch, however, seems to have other plans for the two of them.

It didn’t take long for the two of them to reach Oldale, though Torchic occasionally had trouble keeping up with Mae’s gait. Oldale was a little livelier than Littleroot, but not by much. The Pokémon Mart was a short walk through town; its blue roof was easy to find among the other buildings. The man behind the counter had Mae’s mother’s order waiting for them, so they were in and out of the mart quickly. They took a shortcut back to Littleroot by jumping ledges on Route 101, and were back in town within the hour.

“Should we give this to mom, or see Birch first…?” Mae wondered aloud, “My house is closer, but…”

“Nah, let’s go see Birch,” said Torchic, “I’m tired from all this walking.”

“I can carry you if you want…” said Mae.

“Y-you don’t have to! I can walk!”

“Didn’t you just say…? Never mind.”

Birch’s lab was not difficult to find; it was the largest (and newest) building in town, towering over the quaint houses and modest stores that surrounded it. On the outside it had been built to resemble the buildings around it, but inside it looked modern and clean, with tile floors and white walls. Several bookshelves lined one wall, and there were a couple of desks around the room. Birch’s desk was at the back, the wall behind it covered in sticky notes and calendars. Birch himself sat at his desk, typing something on his laptop, while a younger boy stood nearby, absorbed in the screen of a rectangular device. The boy looked familiar; Mae had seen him around town a few times, but had never spoken to him.

“Hello?” said Mae.

“Ah! Mae, you’re back!” Birch whirled around to face her, taking off a pair of reading glasses as he went, “That didn’t take long at all! Did you have a good walk, Torchic?”

“Sure did!” Torchic chirped, ruffling his feathers excitedly, “I saw lots of cool things with Mae!”

“Good, good!” said Birch, smiling, “Oh, by the way. This is my son, Brendan. He’s your age, I think.”

“Yo,” said the boy next to Birch, looking up from the device. He nodded to her and smiled, “You’re the girl who just moved in next door, right?”

“Next door? Uh… yeah, I guess. You live next door to me?”

“Huh? You don’t know? Well, I guess you did just move in and all…” Brendan rubbed the back of his head, mussing up his floppy hat, “But yeah, I think we’re neighbors. You’re the Gym Leader’s kid, right?”

“Yep, that’s me.”

“That’s what I thought,” said Brendan, “You know, when I heard a gym leader with a kid was moving in next to us, I assumed you’d be a guy…” then, catching himself, he added, “B-but it’s fine that you’re a girl! I don’t have many friends who are girls, so… I hope we get along!”

_Not many friends who are girls, huh? Clearly…_

“I’m Mae,” said Mae, “Mae with an E.”

“Gotcha. That’s cool,” said Brendan, “You don’t see a lot of people spell it that way. I’ll remember it for sure!”

“Anyway,” said Birch, “Mae, thanks again for helping me earlier. I’d been debating about what I should do to thank you, but I think I have an idea now.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah. I’ll tell you what–It looks like Torchic’s really taken a shine to you, so why don’t you keep him? My gift to you.”

“R-really?!” said Mae.

“You mean it!?” said Torchic.

“Raising a Pokémon is a lot of responsibility, and I don’t know what my mom would say if I just walked in with a Pokémon…” Mae continued, “Are you sure about this, professor?”

“I’m sure it’ll be fine,” said Birch, “You and Torchic really seemed to hit it off. Plus, your dad’s a gym leader, so I’m sure your parents won’t mind having another Pokémon around the house. If your mom complains, she can take it up with me!”

Birch grinned reassuringly, but then added, “Of course, if you don’t want it…”

“No, it’s fine! I do!” Mae looked at Torchic, “And you’re okay with that too, right?”

Torchic nodded vigorously.

“I like you, Mae! You’re cool!”

“I think some time spent traveling with a trainer would be good for him,” said Birch, “Even if you’re not planning to travel right away, it’ll be a good opportunity for Torchic to experience life like a normal Pokémon.”

Mae knelt down to get on Torchic’s level. The fire Pokémon stared back at her with bright eyes. A sudden jolt coursed through her body–this was it, her first Pokémon! She’d been dreaming of the day she got a Pokémon of her own, but couldn’t have imagined things would play out like this.

“We’re gonna be together from now on, so…” She smiled at him, “Let’s do our best, okay?”

“Yeah!!” said Torchic, “I should introduce myself, too! You can call me Beni!”

“Beni…?”

“Yeah, that’s his personal name,” said Professor Birch, “Humans haven’t been aware of this, but in actuality, all Pokémon have their own unique names, just like we do. They just can’t articulate their names to us–well, until now, anyway.”

“Until now…” Mae repeated, “Until Beni came along?”

“Essentially,” said Professor Birch, “My formal field is Pokémon habitats, but I dabbled a little with Pokémon linguistics in grad school, so this is just a side project of mine.”

“Pokémon linguistics? That’s a thing?”

“You’d be surprised,” Birch laughed, “It’s been known for many years that Pokémon can understand human speech to some extent, and recently it’s been discovered that Pokémon also have their own languages between species. Pokémon communicate in many different ways, and sometimes in ways that humans can’t even imagine! The world of Pokémon linguistics is an ever-growing field, because we’re only just now getting windows to study it with.”

“Windows like…?”

“There’ve been reports of Pokémon learning how to vocalize human speech after lots of practice,” Birch continued, “And if researchers use those Pokémon as interpreters, the previously unseen world of Pokémon linguistics comes to light.”

“Whoa, that’s actually really cool!” said Mae.

“Right?” said Birch, “As it turns out, Pokémon learn language much same the way we do–easily as babies, not so much later in life. But since Pokémon are generally raised by their parents and taught their own language, training new interpreters as adults can be incredibly difficult. I decided to see if I could teach some Pokémon how to talk from their infancy–this was the subject of my most recent paper, published a couple months ago. As you can probably tell, I was successful. Beni speaks the human language nearly fluently, and since I kept him around others of his species as well, he can understand other Pokémon, too.”

Beni puffed himself up proudly.

“And you’re just giving him to me?” said Mae, “I had no idea he was such an important part of your research….”

“It’s fine,” Birch waved her off, “The paper’s already published anyway. Besides, now that they can talk, they won’t stop telling me how much they want to go outside. I was already planning to give them away to new trainers.”

“Oh…” said Mae.

“Well, in any case,” said Birch, “If you’re going to be a trainer, there’s something else you ought to have. I’d ordered one for myself, but I think you’ll make good use of it, Mae.”

Birch took something off his desk and handed it to her: a rectangular red device identical to the one Brendan was holding.

“This is a Pokédex,” Birch explained, “When you encounter a Pokémon you’ve never seen, you can use the Pokédex to identify it. You can also use it as a field guide to see which Pokémon live in a certain route. Lastly, it stores information about Pokémon you’ve captured: what attacks they know, their relative stats, even their gender and nature are all there. You can easily see how many Pokémon you’ve caught so far, and which ones.”

“Whoa…” said Mae.

“It’s the most useful tool a trainer could possibly have, and to think it was only invented a couple of years ago!” said Birch, “Technology sure is something! We didn’t have anything like that when I was your age. Oh, and I should mention–Pokédexes are generally only issued to trainers, so you can present that at any Pokémon Center to get a Trainer Card. That way you can use Pokémon Center services for free!”

“Man, that’s good to hear,” said Mae. She didn’t have much income aside from allowance from her parents, so she was relieved she wouldn’t have to pay extra to take care of Beni.

“Brendan never goes anywhere without his!” Birch added with a grin, “Whenever he meets a rare Pokémon and records it in his Pokédex, he’ll come find me in the field and show me!”

“ _Dad…”_ Brendan rolled his eyes.

“Oh, speaking of finding Pokémon,” Birch turned to Brendan, “There’s one I want you to find for me on Route 103. Normally it doesn’t live out there, but there’ve been reports of a swarm lately. I’m a little busy with my fieldwork on Route 101, so could you go check it out for me?”

“Sure, sure,” Brendan stuck his Pokédex into his pocket, “Which one is it?”

“Well, people are saying Skitty, but that can’t be right.”

“Skitty? Yeah, that IS weird. I’ll have a look.

“Thanks, kiddo.”

“Hey, Mae,” said Brendan, “You wanna come with? Skitty are pretty rare, so this might be a good opportunity to catch one.”

“Huh?” said Mae, “But I don’t have any Pokéballs…”

“Oh right, you just became a trainer five minutes ago,” said Brendan, “Here, I have tons extra–-here’s ten of ‘em, on me.”

“Ten? That’s a lot…”

“Pokéballs are cheap, so it’s no big deal. Really. Here, take ‘em.”

Mae opened her fanny pack, and Brendan shoveled ten tiny Pokéballs into it from his own bag-–which, Mae discovered, had an entire pocket crammed full of them. How many Pokéballs does one person need?

“Come on, let’s get going. Those Skitty aren’t gonna wait forever!”

Brendan started walking to the front door. Mae looked down at Beni, who looked back up at her before starting to walk as well. Mae noticed, perhaps for the first time, that the central bead of his necklace was made of a pale beige glass, with a red and black swirl in the center.

“Come on, he’s gonna beat us!” said Beni impatiently.

“Hey, Beni,” said Mae, “Your necklace is really pretty. Where did you get it?”

“Huh? Oh. I found it one day a while back. But whatever! Come on, Mae, you’re being a Slowpoke!”

“Alright, alright. See you later, Professor.”

“Have fun, you two!”

Mae followed Beni and Brendan out the door, still wondering a little about Beni’s necklace. It looked expensive… had someone dropped it? She tried to imagine the person who must have once owned it. Perhaps it didn’t matter. Beni had it now, and it seemed to be important to him. Maybe she could convince him to elaborate on it later.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The idea of talking starter Pokemon was part of the very first draft of this story (circa 2007), and I still like it/I actually revisited it in a later story, so I decided to keep it. However, in the original, the process of creating talking Pokemon was vague and not super thought out (it involved breeding, somehow?) so this time I decided to draw on something that’s already been addressed in canon. (see: the episode "Go West, Young Meowth")


	3. First Battle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mae gets her first taste of a real Pokemon battle.

The sound of cicada Pokémon filled their ears as they made their way to Route 103. It was a sleepy midsummer afternoon, and there weren’t a lot of people or Pokémon around. Back in Johto, hot summers had been torture–even though Goldenrod was on the water, the concrete buildings and city air made the humid heat nearly unbearable. Mae had been worried that the heat in Hoenn would be worse, but now that she’d gotten used to it, it wasn’t so bad. Out here in Littleroot and Oldale, there weren’t any concrete roads or sidewalks. The heat brought out the fresh smell of the grass, and ample trees provided much-appreciated shade. You could even catch a faint hint of a sea breeze if you focused hard enough.

On the way through Oldale, they stopped at the Pokémon Center so Mae could get a Trainer Card. When the nurse saw her Pokédex, she was able to print Mae a card right away. It had her picture, the date of issue, an expiration date (set ten years after the date of issue) and a loopy signature that Mae couldn’t read. She could identify two capital S’s, and that was it. Under the signature was printed “current Hoenn Champion”. They left the Pokémon Center after Mae signed the back of her card, wondering who this S. S. person might be.

“Okay, here we are!” said Brendan as they left Oldale from a north exit, “Route 103! Let’s see… If I use the scanning function on my Pokédex, I can see if there are any Skitty nearby…”

“Scanning function?”

“Yeah. It’s something Devon Corp. added to the Pokédex recently. If you’ve met a Pokémon before, you can use the scanning function to see if there are any nearby. Supposedly they’re developing a more detailed scanner for the next model of Pokénav, but this works for now.”

_Pokénav? Devon?_ These were new terms for Mae. She was about to ask what they meant, but Brendan was already off in search of Pokémon, and she had no choice but to follow.

The two of them wandered the route for a while, following Brendan’s scanner as best they could. Its range was limited, and the Pokémon kept moving out of range. Mae wanted to use her Pokédex to help, but since she’d never encountered Skitty before, she couldn’t use the scanner to look for one.

Finally, they reached a dead end. The route ended in a dense forest, though the mountains in the distance could be seen between the tops of the trees.

“Route 3 doesn’t go through…?” said Mae.

“Nah, it’s a dead end to the north,” said Brendan, “You can surf east across the water to get to Slateport, but I don’t have a Pokémon that knows how to surf.”

He looked down at his Pokédex again.

“And now the scanner isn’t picking Skitty up at all…” he said, “We might be out of luck, Mae.”

“Lame,” said Mae, “We came all this way for nothing.”

“Yeah…” Brendan looked up, surveying the route by eye just in case. Other than the tall grass swaying gently in the breeze, there were no signs of movement, “Hey, but you know what? Since we both have our own Pokémon, why don’t we battle? I’ll teach you what being a trainer’s about!”

“Huh?” said Mae, “You mean–right now!?”

“Yeah! Why not?”

“Yeah, Mae!” said Beni, hopping up and down excitedly, “A real battle!! Let’s do it!”

“Well, okay,” Mae backed up a few paces to put some space between her and Brendan, “Beni, you’re up!”

Beni took his place in front of Mae, ruffling his feathers to pump himself up.

“Alright, then let’s go! Zuzu!”

Brendan took a Pokéball from his pocket and tossed it onto the field. From it popped a small blue and orange Pokémon that looked sort of like a dog with fins. Mae had never seen one before, and for a second she wondered how she was going to counter it. Suddenly, she remembered her Pokédex, and whipped it out.

“ _Mudkip. Mud Fish Pokémon. Type: Water. The fin on Mudkip’s head acts as highly sensitive radar. Using this fin to sense movements of water and air, this Pokémon can determine what is taking place around it without using its eyes. If it is faced with a tight situation in battle, this Pokémon will unleash its amazing power: it can crush rocks bigger than itself.”_

“Whoa!” said Mae, “He’s tough for a little guy.”

“Yeah, when he actually applies himself,” said Brendan, nudging Mudkip with his foot. Mudkip’s lazy expression didn’t change, and it didn’t seem to mind Brendan nudging it, “Come on, dude, battle’s starting!”

“Don’t wanna,” said Mudkip.

Mae jumped.

“Mudkip talks too!?”

“Yeah, he’s one of dad’s other research Pokémon,” said Brendan, “He said I could pick one to keep, so I picked this guy.”

“I hope you’re ready for me, Zuzu! I’m not holding back!” said Beni, “I’m gonna beat you up!”

“Whatever,” said Zuzu, yawning.

“Does he not like you…?” asked Mae.

“Nah, he’s just a lazy ass,” said Brendan, “Come on, Zuzu!”

“ _Fine_ ,” Zuzu got to his feet with some difficulty. Mae noted that Zuzu looked a little chubbier than the picture of Mudkip from her Pokédex.

“Okay, Beni,” Mae quickly brought up Beni’s information on her Pokédex. Her Pokémon knew scratch, focus energy, and ember. Since Zuzu was a water type, ember wouldn’t do much damage, “Use scratch!”

“Tackle, Zuzu!”

Beni was faster; he ran and scratched Zuzu with the claws on his feet. Zuzu retaliated by tackling Beni to the ground, but the bird Pokémon wriggled free before too long.

“Beni, scratch again!”

“Zuzu, you use growl!”

Zuzu growled aggressively at Beni, and the fire Pokémon took a step back nervously. He glanced back at Mae, and she nodded to him encouragingly. Beni turned back to the battle and scratched at Zuzu again. His attacks weren’t doing much damage.

“Zuzu, water gun!”

“Beni, look out!!”

Zuzu opened its mouth and spat a stream of water at Beni. The attack was super effective, and Beni ran dripping behind Mae’s legs.

_We’re not doing enough damage each turn, and Mudkip has an elemental move already…_ Mae thought, _Beni probably won’t last much longer than a turn or two. We’ve gotta get more power somehow… wait, that’s it!_

“Okay, Beni,” said Mae, “I have an idea. It’s risky, but it’s worth a shot. Try using focus energy!”

“Focus energy? Okay…” Beni stepped cautiously back onto the battlefield.

“Zuzu, give it another water gun!”

Zuzu sprayed water from its mouth again, but this time Beni rolled to get out of the way. He stood up, planted his feet into the ground, and took a deep breath.

“I’ve gotta focus… focus on protecting Mae!”

“Zuzu, water gun!”

“Beni, scratch!”

Beni ran forward and dove for Zuzu, scratching as hard as it could with its tiny claws. The attack took Zuzu by surprise, and the water-type Pokémon fell over on its back. Zuzu struggled to right itself, and couldn’t complete its attack.

“We’ve got it now!” shouted Mae. Her heart was racing; maybe they could win this after all! “Scratch one more time, Beni!”

“Come on, Zuzu, finish it with water gun!”

Beni moved faster, scratching Zuzu one final time. The water-type Pokémon couldn’t endure this final attack and fell over on its side, defeated.

“Whaaat? No way!” Brendan’s mouth fell open, “Even though we had the advantage, you guys won?”

“Good job, Beni!!” shouted Mae. She ran to pick her Pokémon up, and raised him high over her head, “We did it!”

“We did it!” Beni echoed, “I thought I was a goner… but you really knew what to do, Mae! You’re the best!”

“Hey, _you’re_ the one who pulled through at the last minute! Give yourself some credit, Beni!”

Brendan recalled his Pokémon, watching them with something like admiration in his eyes.

“You’re not bad at this for a girl, Mae,” he said, “Beni really seems to like you, even though you just met him. I guess being good with Pokémon runs in the family!”

_‘Not bad at this for a girl’?! Sheesh, who raised this kid!?_

“Haha, maybe,” said Mae, “I really like watching Pokémon tournaments on TV, and keeping up with league competitions, so I guess some of it rubbed off on me.”

“Makes sense,” Brendan nodded, “So, Mae? How’d your first trainer battle feel?”

Mae hesitated. She hadn’t really realized it, but this was the first time she’d ever fought a real Pokémon battle. It had felt so… _natural._ She had seen immediately that Beni was at a disadvantage, and came up with a solution almost without thinking. Her heart still pounded from the rush of such a turnaround win.

“It was fun,” she said, “ _Really_ fun. The most fun I’ve had in a while–certainly since moving here.”

She looked down at Beni, cradled in her arms like a baby. She’d worried that Pokémon training would be hard, but with Beni, things were a piece of cake. He already put so much trust in her… maybe she really _could_ become a trainer for real, at this rate.

“Wow, really?” said Brendan, “That’s good to hear, Mae. I like battling myself, but I think finding Pokémon in the wild is more my thing.”

Brendan put Zuzu’s Pokéball in his pocket before continuing.

“So? Do you think you’re gonna try to fill the Pokédex too?”

“Nah,” said Mae, “I’m not really interested in stuff like that–it’s Pokémon battles that interest me the most.”

“Gotcha,” said Brendan, “It’s almost like you’re the opposite of me. But that’s okay! Whether you’re catching Pokémon or battling with them, there are lots of ways to be a trainer. There’s no wrong way to have fun with Pokémon–or at least, that’s what my dad always says.”

“That sounds like something he’d say.”

“I’m probably gonna leave to go on a journey soon,” said Brendan, “Traveling around and catching all sorts of Pokémon. Maybe I’ll even win some gym badges while I’m at it.”

“Sounds fun,” said Mae, “I’m thinking about going on a journey too.”

_Well, not exactly thinking_ , she thought to herself, _since I only just became a trainer and all._ It had occurred to her that if she stayed in Littleroot, her chances of having another battle like that were next to nothing. The only way to find new opponents was to travel–and that’s exactly what she wanted to do.

“Maybe I’ll see you around, then?” said Brendan with a grin, “We can battle next time we meet and see how much we’ve improved!”

“Yeah,” said Mae, “I think I’d like to battle you again sometime.”

Brendan held his hand out to her. Mae, holding Beni in one arm, shook his hand with the other.

“… crap!” she said, “I was in the middle of grabbing something for my mom, and I almost forgot to give it to her. I should probably do that…”

“Yikes. Yeah, you should head back,” said Brendan, “I’m gonna stay out here and keep looking for Skitty. See you later, Mae!”

“See ya!”

Mae waved to Brendan before turning and heading back towards Oldale. It wouldn’t be too long of a walk back, but Mae sort of dreaded the look on her mother’s face when she returned. Not only had she taken way longer than she should have, she was bringing back a Pokémon…

Well, what was a few extra minutes longer going to do?

Mae stopped at the Pokémon Center in Oldale to heal Beni one more time before heading back south to Littleroot.

* * *

The sun was starting to crawl toward the horizon, and the late-afternoon heat made Mae feel a little drowsy. She took Route 101 as quickly as she could, hopping over ledges and taking shortcuts through bushes. Traveling as a trainer would be tough, not to mention physically demanding–but she knew that as long as she had a Pokémon with her, she would be okay. Staying in Littleroot just didn’t seem like an option anymore.

As she neared the entrance to town, she suddenly heard a noise from above–it sounded like a Pokémon’s cry. She looked up just in time to see a blue and white Pokémon zoom overhead and disappear behind the tops of the trees.

“What was that?” Mae got out her Pokédex to identify it, but the Pokémon was already too far away. She’d never seen anything like it before, or any Pokémon move that fast. It had been like a jet plane: sleek and smooth, flying without flapping its wings. Had it been a Pokémon at all? Maybe the sound she’d heard was just the sound of it moving so quickly through the air.

“Mae, c’mon!” said Beni, “Don’t forget about your mom!”

“Oh, right!” Mae snapped out of her trance and started walking again. Before long she broke into a run, and within five minutes was back in Littleroot town.


	4. Pokemon Family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Now that she has a Pokemon, Mae's all set to become a real Pokemon trainer. Just one problem--she still needs to tell her family the news.

Mae’s mother was (understandably) very cross when Mae finally came in the front door. She’d been waiting at the kitchen table, arms folded, and Mae froze just seeing her standing there.

“Uh… hey mom…”

“Mae,” her mother said sternly, “Just where have you been? And where did that Pokémon come from?”

“It’s a long story,” said Mae, “But I got that thing you ordered, so…”

Mae unzipped her fanny pack and got out the small package. Mae’s mom took it from her without a word. Beni watched them fearfully, hiding behind Mae’s legs.

“Ah, well, at least you didn’t forget about that on your little adventure,” Mae’s mother sighed, “You were gone for so long, I started getting worried.”

“Sorry…”

Mae picked up Beni comfortingly.

“Mom, this is Beni,” she said, “I met Professor Birch on the way to Oldale, and he gave me Beni as a gift for helping him out.”

“More like _saving_ him,” Beni corrected her, “If we hadn’t done anything, he would’ve been a goner!”

Mae’s mother jumped.

“It talked!”

“We’re going to hear that a lot from now on, aren’t we?” said Beni.

Mae laughed weakly.

“Probably…”

“Where did the Professor find…?”

“Oh, he taught me!” said Beni, “He’s lame to be around, but he’s nice. He even let me stay with Mae!”

“Well, this is awfully sudden…” said Mae’s mother, “I think your father had wanted to catch you your first Pokémon.”

“Oh.” Mae’s stomach sank.

“But! I’m sure this will be fine,” Mae’s mother brightened, “If you tell him what happened, he’ll understand. He should be on his way home soon…”

“Um,” said Mae, “Are you okay with this? With me having a Pokémon?”

“Of course!” said Mae’s mother, “I was just a little surprised that you got one so soon. What kind of Gym Leader’s wife would I be if I opposed my own daughter becoming a trainer?”

Mae’s doubts lifted a little.

“Mae, can you help me out with dinner? I’m making Dad’s favorite tonight.”

“Wow, really? We never get to have that…”

“Well, the meat was on sale today, so I decided to jump on it. I’ll chop the onions if you brown the meat.”

“Deal. Come on, Beni, you can help too.”

“Okay!” said Beni, but then added, “Help with what?”

Mae and her mother laughed and set to work cooking. Before long the kitchen was filled with the smell of simmering onions and meat, and Mae related the story of her day in more detail. She’d just about gotten to her battle with Brendan when the front door opened, and her father walked in. His Linoone darted in past him, making a beeline for the kitchen. It sat up on its hind legs and looked at Mae pleadingly.

“No, Linoone, this is people food,” said Mae, “You know you can’t have that.”

Linoone whined in disappointment and set itself back down.

“How was your day, dear?”

“Slow, but that’s fine,” Mae’s father walked over and gave her mother a peck on the cheek, “Only had one or two people come by today, and had to use my weaker teams–oh? Mae, is that a Pokémon?”

Mae nodded nervously.

“This is Beni,” she said, “Professor Birch gave him to me.”

“Dear, Mae really helped the professor out today,” said Mae’s mother, “She told me he was jumped by three Pokémon at once!”

“Three?” her father furrowed his brow.

“But me and Mae got in there and really showed ‘em what’s what!” said Beni, wriggling a little in Mae’s arms, “Right, Mae? They didn’t stand a chance!”

For a minute, Mae’s father was silent.

“You heard that too, right Caroline…?”

“Plain as day, dear,” said Caroline, “It seems teaching Pokémon to talk is a hobby of your friend’s.”

“First I’ve heard of it,” Mae’s father shook his head, “Well–Torchic, you said your name was Beni?”

“Yep!” said Beni.

“I’m Norman, and I’m a Gym Leader here in Hoenn,” he said, “Maybe one day we’ll cross paths in battle.”

“Oh, and I forgot to introduce myself earlier, but I’m Caroline,” said Mae’s mother, “I hope you feel welcome here, Beni. We’re a Pokémon-loving family, so make yourself right at home!”

Beni buried his beak into his feathers in embarrassment.

“Dinner’s just about ready, dear. Can you set the table? I’ll get food for Linoone and Beni.”

Mae and Norman both helped put chopsticks on the table, and Caroline poured Pokémon food into two bowls from a bag on the counter. Beni jumped out of Mae’s arms and scrambled over to one of the bowls, joined just as quickly by Linoone.

“Mae, how much beef do you want?”

“Less than dad usually has–but not that much less!”

“You got it!”

Mae’s mother scooped rice into three bowls, and then draped the thin-sliced meat and onions on top, browned and simmered to perfection. She topped the beef bowls with green onions and a raw egg each before setting them down at the table. Norman had never been one for complex meals, preferring the simple dishes of Johto and Kanto to the elaborate meals found elsewhere.

“Anyone want some quick pickles? I think we still have some in the fridge.”

“I’ll take a little,” said Norman.

“Me too!” said Mae.

Caroline set the quick pickles out on the table and sat down with the others.

“Alright then,” said Norman, taking up his chopsticks, “Let’s eat!”

For a few minutes there was silence as the family ate. After a while, Norman asked Mae how exactly she came to get a Pokémon from Birch, and Mae did her best to repeat her story with the same details she’d told her mother. This time she was able to talk about the battle with Brendan, too. By the time she finished, everyone was done eating, and Linoone and Beni had fallen asleep on the floor together.

“Well, Mae,” said Norman, “You’ve had a very exciting day. Your first Pokémon, and your first battle… as a father and a Gym Leader, I’m incredibly proud of you.”

“T-thanks, dad…”

“Any plans to go on a journey?”

Mae jumped a little.

“Huh? Uh… yeah, actually. I’ve been thinking that I really wanna travel around and battle more with Beni.”

“And I think you absolutely should,” said Mae’s father, nodding.

“I agree,” said her mother.

“In fact, you should start as soon as possible,” Norman added, “That way you can get the most out of it. When you’re young is the best time to travel as a trainer!”

“Dear…” Mae’s mother shot her father a look, “Starting out so soon? She just got her Pokémon. Besides, I’ll be lonely here all day if she leaves…”

“Mom…”

Caroline seemed down at first, but after a while she smiled.

“Oh, what the hey,” she said, “I remember when I first started out as a trainer. I couldn’t wait to leave the house!”

Mae stared at her.

“You were a trainer…?”

“Little known fact about your mother, honey,” Caroline winked, “My Pokémon are all still in Johto, though. Your aunt is taking care of them for me.”

“Oh. No wonder I’ve never met them.”

“You should go on a journey, Mae,” said her mother, “I’d hate for you to be bored here in Littleroot, and Beni seems like he’d like the adventure too.”

“Why not start tomorrow?” Norman offered, “No time like the present, as they say. There’s no use lolligagging around here!”

“Really…?” Mae could hardly believe it. She’d expected her parents to be at least a little opposed to her leaving home. But, since both of them had had journeys of their own, maybe they’d been waiting eagerly for the day they got to send her on her journey, too.

“Make sure you pack well!” said Caroline, “I don’t want to hear you calling home because you forgot to bring underwear!”

“ _Mom_ …”

The three of them cleared the table, and Norman set to work washing dishes. Mae headed upstairs to her room, leaving Beni where he was–it seemed rude to wake a Pokémon who was sleeping so soundly.

Mae’s room was bigger than it had been in Goldenrod, and she had plenty of space to hang posters and display her collection of Pokémon dolls. Her eyes passed over each one in turn, wondering how soon she’d get to see them again. Should she bring one with her? After some debating, she decided not to. She had no doubt she’d buy more on the road–Pokémon dolls were a weakness of hers, and if she saw one she wanted, she wouldn’t be able to resist it.

She glanced at the posters on the wall–posters advertising League competitions, promotional posters for Gym Leaders and League members… she’d brought quite a few over from Johto, but the rest were in storage. Her favorite poster was on the back of her door: a huge spread of Lance holding his cape dramatically and looking confidently at the camera. His then-current win streak and usual team were detailed along one side, with a blurb about each of his Pokémon. How many times had she looked at that poster and wondered how she would counter his team, if she had Pokémon of her own?

Her pipe dream of challenging Lance at the Indigo Open was further away than ever, but for some reason, she couldn’t feel disheartened. Hoenn had its own league and champion–that mysterious S.S. was out there somewhere, waiting for a challenger like her to come along. She’d just have to slog through eight gyms to get to them.

_One day, S.S.–You and I will definitely battle. I can feel it. And when we do, win or lose… I’ll show you something you’ve never seen before!_

* * *

In Birch’s Pokémon lab, the machines continued to hum and whir long after the professor had locked up for the night. The final talking Pokémon sat in a Pokéball on top of Birch’s desk, with a note containing contact information for its future owner. That trainer would be by tomorrow…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> little did mae know that “S.S.” would end up being the man of her dreams /bricked


	5. A Pokemon Thief?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The next morning, Mae gets a rude awakening with news of a burglary at the Pokemon lab.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, you know how I get really attached to one-off characters from the show/movies? there's gonna be a lot of that

Mae was rudely awakened the next morning by her mother, who knocked twice on her door before barging straight in.

“Mae, honey, get up!” she said, “Your friend Brendan’s here to see you. He says something happened at the Pokémon lab last night, and he wants you to check it out.”

“Wha…?” Mae sat up.

“Mae! Come on!” Brendan’s voice floated up the stairs, “My dad’s freaking out!”

“I’ll be right there…” Mae dragged herself out of bed, “I’m gonna get dressed, mom. Close the door.”

Caroline closed the door, and Mae set about getting dressed. She tied her bandana somewhat haphazardly, and had to try three times to clip her fanny pack on. She brushed her teeth quickly, took the stairs two at a time, and grabbed an apple off the table. Beni had been sitting next to the fruit bowl on the table, and he leaped off to follow her. Brendan was waiting for her near the door, and the three of them left the house together.

“So, what happened?” asked Mae, taking a bite of the apple.

“Well, besides Beni and Zuzu, there was a third Pokémon that Dad taught how to talk,” said Brendan, “He was going to give it to a kid from Petalburg today, but… last night it went missing. Dad thinks someone stole it–or, Dad _knows_ someone stole it.”

“How does he know?”

“The thief left his business card.”

They arrived at the lab to find the front door wide open and a car marked “OLDALE POLICE” parked out front. They headed inside. The lab was much the same as it had been the previous day: Birch’s assistants milled around, and Birch himself was at the back of the lab, talking to a police officer. Next to him was a small, quiet-looking boy with green hair.

“And you’re sure that’s all that was taken?” the officer asked, glancing over his notes.

“I’m positive,” said Birch, “It may look a little disorganized, but I know this lab better than anyone. Treecko was the only thing they took.”

“I see,” the officer pocketed his notebook, “Well, since the thief left a calling card, we can start lining up some suspects. We’ll have to take it with us as evidence.”

“That’s fine,” said Birch.

“Dad, I brought Mae,” said Brendan. Birch turned to them.

“Oh, thank goodness,” said Birch, “Torchic is with you, too. So it really _was_ just Treecko that was taken…”

“What happened?” asked Mae.

“Someone stole Treecko right out of the lab!” said Birch, “Who could do such a thing…?”

“Whoever this ‘M’ guy is did it,” said Brendan. He pointed to something lying on the desk: a red card with a black “M” logo printed on it.

“What’s on the other side?” asked Mae.

“Just some weird design,” said Brendan. The officer flipped it over for her with a gloved hand. The reverse side was purple, with a green streak that had a toothed edge on one side. Mae couldn’t make heads or tails of the design.

“Yep, that’s weird,” said Mae.

“I just hope Treecko’s okay…” said Birch, “If you officers ever catch this guy…”

“We’ll be sure to let you know, especially if we can recover Treecko,” said the officer, “It may take a while. It’s highly likely that this crime is connected to Team Magma, given the logo on the card…”

“I see,” Birch seemed nervous, “I thought we’d seen the last of them four years ago…”

“So did we,” said the officer, “Anyway, please keep in touch if anything else comes up. Have a good day, Professor.”

“Yeah… thanks, officer…”

The officer bowed politely, slipped the card into a plastic bag, and then left. Birch slumped into his chair.

“What a disaster…”

“Um,” said the quiet-looking boy. He turned to professor Birch, “Um, professor…?”

“Right. Sorry, Wally…” said the professor, “I know you were really looking forward to getting a Pokémon, but…”

“Who’s this?” asked Brendan.

“Oh! This is Wally,” said the professor, “He’s from Petalburg city, and his parents are sending him to Verdanturf soon to live with his aunt.”

Wally nodded.

“My health isn’t always so good, and my parents think the clear air in Verdanturf will be better for me,” said Wally, “I wanted to take a Pokémon along, but… I guess I’ll just have to go by myself…”

“Nonsense!” said Professor Birch, “You came all this way to get a Pokémon. It’d be a waste to go home empty-handed... I know! Brendan, Mae! How about one of you help Wally catch his first Pokémon?”

“Sure!” said Mae.

“What kind of Pokémon do you want, Wally?” asked Brendan, “There are plenty of Pokémon that live around here.”

“Well…” said Wally, “I like the Pokémon that live around Petalburg, so… I guess one from around there…”

“Okay,” said Brendan, “Mae and I can probably get you back to Petalburg.”

“Yeah,” said Mae, “I was planning on starting my journey today anyway, so…”

“Wow, really?” said Wally, “You’re brave, Mae… I don’t know if I’d be able to go on a journey by myself…”

“Mae won’t be alone! She’ll have me!” Beni piped up. Wally jumped a little and looked down at Beni.

“Oh, you’re like the Pokémon I was supposed to get,” said Wally.

“Yup!”

“Well, let’s get going,” said Brendan, “Petalburg’s a long way from here.”

“I ought to tell mom I’m leaving already, then…” said Mae, “You two go on ahead. I’ll meet you at the entrance to Route 101.”

“Got it,” said Brendan, “C’mon, Wally. I’ve met all the Pokémon that live on Route 102, so you can look at my Pokédex and pick out the one you want.”

“Okay…”

“Wally, you should take a Pokédex too,” said Birch, “It’s hard to be a trainer these days without one! They’re so useful!”

Birch pulled a Pokédex from his desk drawer and handed it to Wally.

“It’s a bit of an older model, but it should still work just fine,” Birch continued, “Brendan and Mae can explain the Pokédex to you later.

“T-thank you, professor…”

“C’mon, Wally,” said Brendan, “Your new partner awaits!”

Brendan and Wally walked to the door, with Mae and Beni not far behind. They split up outside; the boys heading for the route entrance, and Mae heading home.

Caroline wasn’t too keen on her daughter leaving immediately, but she knew Mae could handle herself out there. She gave Mae a new pair of running shoes (“I saw them on the internet the other day, but they were out of my size, so I got some for you.”), a quick hug, and a sandwich in a plastic bag for the road. Within fifteen minutes Mae was out the door and on her way. As she reached the entrance to Route 101, she noticed Brendan and Wally looking at Brendan’s Pokédex together near the sign. She turned around to take one last look at Littleroot–she’d only just moved here, so she didn’t feel too bad about leaving already. She had other things on her mind. When would she be back?

Brendan looked up and spotted her.

“C’mon, Mae!”

“Right, coming!”

She and Beni ran to meet them, and the group left Littleroot town together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mae and Brendan are both 16, and Wally’s 13 or 14? something like that. The point is he’s younger than they are by a couple years


	6. Route 102

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Brendan, Mae, and Wally make their way toward Petalburg city...

The three of them breezed through Route 101, Mae and Brendan defeating any wild Pokémon that got in their way. In Oldale Brendan gave Wally five Pokéballs from his bag; Wally initially protested (“O-oh no, I couldn’t! These are yours, after all! I have a little money, I’ll buy my own–!”) but eventually Brendan managed to convince him it was no big deal. They had lunch at the Pokémon Center so Wally could get a trainer card, and then set out for Petalburg.

Route 102 was full of wild Pokémon Mae hadn’t seen before. While Route 101 only had one or two species of Pokémon living on it, Route 102 was home to several more kinds. Mae found a bunch she wanted to catch, but Beni kept defeating them by mistake.

“Mae, if you want to catch a Pokémon, you have to go easy on it,” said Brendan, “You can’t catch a fainted Pokémon!”

“I know, I know!” said Mae. She shot a look at Beni, “Try holding back a little next time, okay?”

“ _Fine_ ,” said Beni, “You just don’t wanna admit that I’m the strongest Pokémon here!”

“What does _that_ have to do with anything–?”

The tall grass ahead of them began to rustle, and the three of them jumped. Wally ran to hide behind Mae.

“W-what’s that…?” he said.

As they watched the rustling grass, a Pokémon’s tail occasionally appeared. It was broom shaped, with brown and tan stripes. Brendan whipped out his Pokédex, which pinged as it identified the Pokémon in front of them.

“That’s a Zigzagoon!” he said, “Careful, though, if we move too fast, we might scare it away…”

“Zigzagoon…?” said Wally. He shuffled over to Brendan and looked at the Pokédex screen, “I don’t know if I want that Pokémon. It seems like it’d be a handful.”

“Hey, that’s pretty cute,” said Mae, peeking at the Pokédex too, “I think _I_ want it!”

“Ok, but don’t just run over there,” said Brendan, “Some Pokémon will run away if they hear people approaching. Creep up to it nice and slow-like.”

“Uh…?” Mae didn’t see what difference it would make–a timid Pokémon would probably be _more_ inclined to run away after being startled–but she decided to try it anyway. She and Beni crept toward the Zigzagoon, careful not to make noise…

Suddenly the rustling stopped, and the Pokémon leaped out of the grass to face them. It growled and pawed the ground a little.

“Looks like this guy wants to fight!” said Mae excitedly, “Ok, Beni, get ‘em!”

Beni scrambled to take his place on the field.

“Beni, use ember!”

Beni spat a couple of weak flames from its mouth, hitting Zigzagoon and doing average damage. The Pokémon retaliated by kicking sand into Beni’s face. The bird Pokémon coughed and shook its head to get the sand out of its feathers.

“Beni, use ember again!”

Beni spat a couple more flames, but this time only a few of them landed–the sand was irritating his vision, and he couldn’t aim as well. Zigzagoon fought back by tackling Beni to the ground.

“Yikes! Beni, stand up!”

Beni got back to his feet.

“I-is Beni gonna be okay…?” said Wally nervously.

“He’ll be fine,” said Mae.

“Yeah. I’m doing great!” Beni responded, “Pokémon battle all the time! This is nothing!”

“Okay, I think it’s ready…” said Mae. She took a Pokéball from her fanny pack, “I hope this works!”

Mae tossed the Pokéball at her opponent, and the Zigzagoon was sucked inside. The Pokéball fell to the ground, shaking vigorously as the Pokémon inside struggled to break free. After a few tense minutes, the warning light went off, and the Pokéball lay still.

“You did it!” said Brendan.

“I did it!” Mae repeated. She dashed over and picked the Pokéball off the ground, “I caught a Pokémon!”

“Wow, Mae,” said Wally, “You made it look so easy. I bet you’ve caught tons of Pokémon before.”

“Actually, it was my first time,” Mae admitted, “I just got my first Pokémon yesterday.”

“W-what? That’s incredible…!” said Wally, “You and Beni get along so well, I never would’ve thought you’d only just met.”

“Hey Mae, why don’t I get those Pokémon healed up for you?” said Brendan. He took a small device from his bag: it was a rectangle with a glass dome attached to it, and six indentations the size of Pokéballs. Mae recalled Beni and handed both his and Zigzagoon’s Pokéballs to Brendan. Brendan put the Pokéballs in the machine, and it whirred a bit as some lights lit up beneath them. The lights died down, and the machine let out a jingle: Mae’s Pokémon were all healed.

“That’s a cool device,” said Mae.

“Yeah, my dad gave it to me,” said Brendan, “This way I never have to carry healing items on the road, and can just worry about catching Pokémon!”

“That almost seems like cheating,” said Mae, “But thanks for healing my guys.”

“No prob,” said Brendan, handing back Mae’s Pokémon, “Anyway, let’s get moving. Wally’s first Pokémon is out there somewhere!”

The three of them trudged on into the grass. For the most part, progression was fairly slow: tall grass had grown over parts of the trail, and young trainers were eager to show off their bug Pokémon collections (Brendan and Mae had to turn them down). Wally stuck close by Mae, looking around nervously at every bush and tree.

“Hey Wally,” said Mae, “Do you wanna try catching your first Pokémon yourself?”

“H-huh?” said Wally, “I mean, yeah, but… I don’t have a Pokémon of my own, s-so how would I…?”

“You can borrow my Zigzagoon if you want!” said Mae, “Here, take this. You never know when the Pokémon you want is gonna pop out!”

Mae thrust Zigzagoon’s Pokéball into Wally’s hands. The boy almost dropped it.

“I-I don’t know if I can,” said Wally, “I mean, I’ve never even had a b-battle before…”

“It’s easy!” said Brendan, “Anyone can have a Pokémon Battle–that’s what so great about them!”

“W-well, if you say so…”

Mae got out her Pokédex and pulled up the information for Zigzagoon.

“My Zigzagoon knows Tackle and Growl,” she said, “So as long as you tell Zigzagoon to ‘tackle’, you should be fine!”

The grass ahead of them began to rustle, and Wally jumped. Brendan got out his own Pokédex to identify the Pokémon.

“Ralts…” he said, “That one’s kinda rare. Hey Wally, have a look.”

Wally peered over at the Pokédex, gripping Zigzagoon’s Pokéball tightly.

“Oh!” said Wally, “I’ve seen that Pokémon before! It looks quiet and easy to care for. Maybe I should catch that one…”

“Go for it, dude,” said Mae, “You got this!”

“Okay…” said Wally, “P-please watch to see if I do it right…”

Wally gulped before stepping forward as carefully as he could. He managed to get a couple of inches away from the grass before Ralts noticed he was there. The startled Pokémon cried out and used its psychic powers to push Wally away. Luckily, it wasn’t very strong, and Wally barely felt it.

“O-okay…!” Wally backed up a few paces, “Um… I’m s-supposed to weaken the Pokémon before I throw a Pokéball, right?”

“You got it!” said Brendan.

“Okay, here goes…!” said Wally, “Zigzagoon, go!”

Wally tossed the Pokéball, and Zigzagoon popped from it. The Pokémon sniffed at the ground a little bit before looking to Wally for instructions.

“Um… tackle!”

Zigzagoon leaped forward and ran towards Ralts in an erratic line. The raccoon Pokémon hit Ralts hard, and the opponent growled a little in an attempt to dissuade Zigzagoon from attacking again.

“It can probably take another hit,” said Brendan.

“It can? O-oh, okay,” said Wally, “Zigzagoon, tackle again!”

Zigzagoon repeated its attack, this time knocking Ralts back into the grass. The psychic Pokémon righted itself and tried using its powers to attack Zigzagoon, but was largely unsuccessful.

“Should I throw the ball now…?” said Wally.

“Sure, looks good to me!” said Brendan.

“Okay…! Ralts, get ready! I’m gonna catch you!”

Wally took a Pokéball from the pocket of his sweater and chucked it as hard as he could at Ralts. The Pokéball opened, sucking Ralts inside, and fell to the ground. All eyes were focused on the Pokéball, watching tensely as it wiggled and shook…

_Ping!_

The warning light went off, and the ball lay still.

“I… I did it…!” said Wally. He walked over and picked up the Pokéball, “It’s my… my own Pokémon!”

Wally looked like he was about to cry; he held the Pokéball in his hands and stared at it as though it were a precious treasure. Zigzagoon barked and ran in a circle, proud of itself. Finally Wally looked up, looking from Brendan to Mae with a huge smile.

“Here, Mae,” Wally handed back Zigzagoon’s Pokéball, “Thanks for letting me borrow it…”

“Aw, it was no big deal,” said Mae, recalling her Pokémon.

“H-huh? But it _was_ a big deal!” said Wally, “T-thanks to you, I caught my very own Pokémon… and thanks to you too, Brendan! For helping me find it, and for giving me the Pokéball to catch it with… I’m so grateful!”

Brendan grinned.

“I’m glad you managed to get a Pokémon after all,” he said, “C’mon, Petalburg’s not far from here.”

“Oh, right!” said Wally, “My parents are probably waiting for me… They’re not gonna believe it when I tell them I caught a Pokémon myself–agh!”

Wally started coughing. Mae and Brendan moved closer to him, but he recovered in a few seconds.

“It’s just my asthma,” he said, “I got a little too excited. Maybe in Verdanturf I’ll start feeling better. No, I know I’ll start feeling better… because I have Ralts with me now!”

Brendan and Mae shared a smile.

“Let’s get going,” said Mae.

“Yeah,” said Wally, “But, um… let’s try to avoid any more battles, okay?”

* * *

Before long, the group reached Petalburg city. Petalburg was a larger town than Oldale and Littleroot, but it was still a fairly small and quaint place. Its many buildings all had trees and flowery gardens in front, and grass grew right to the edge of the town’s sandy paths. Once they got into town, it wasn’t hard to find Wally’s parents–they were waiting anxiously for him outside the Pokémon Center. Wally noticed them immediately and waved to them. His parents ran to greet them.

“Wally, you’re back!” said Wally’s father, “And you’ve brought friends, too! Did you meet them in Littleroot?”

“Yeah!” said Wally, “Mae and Brendan helped me catch a Pokémon!”

“Catch…?” said Wally’s mother, “I thought you were supposed to get a Pokémon from Professor Birch. Didn’t he walk to his lab with you…?”

“Oh, uh, y-yeah, I was, but…” Wally fidgeted with the strap of his bag, “Someone s-stole the Pokémon I was supposed to get…”

“Stole?!”

“B-but the professor didn’t want me to go home empty-handed, so he had Mae and Brendan help me catch my own Pokémon!”

“Oh! How nice of them,” said Wally’s mother, “Thank you both for taking the time to help our son.”

“Aw, it was nothing,” said Brendan.

“Wally, we should really be going,” said Wally’s father, “Your uncle is expecting us.”

“Okay…” said Wally, “Um, Mae, Brendan…? Thanks again for helping me so much. I’m going to try my best together with Ralts, so… please do your best too!”

Mae couldn’t help smiling.

“Of course!” she said.

“And, um, if it’s not too much trouble… well, if you’re ever in Verdanturf… please come visit me.”

“Alright, Wally, that’s enough,” said Wally’s father, “If you keep saying goodbyes, we’ll never get out of here.”

“O-okay…” Wally nodded to Mae and Brendan, “Bye! Let’s meet again sometime!”

“Bye Wally!” said Brendan.

“Bye!”

Wally and his father started walking, but his mother lingered a little. She smiled at Mae and Brendan, something indescribable in her expression.

“Thanks again for helping him,” she said, “Our son has been sickly his whole life and was rarely able to leave the house, so he doesn’t have many friends. Recently he’s been well enough to travel, so we decided to send him to Verdanturf with a Pokémon to keep him company. Hopefully it’ll help his condition improve even more.”

“I hope so too,” said Mae.

“Anyway, I shouldn’t keep them waiting,” said Wally’s mother, “Thank you again. Goodbye!”

Wally’s mother turned around and hurried to catch up with her husband and son. Mae and Brendan looked at each other.

“I feel bad for him,” said Brendan, “I’ve spent my whole life outdoors, so I can’t even imagine what it’d be like to be cooped up like that…”

“Yeah…”

“Well,” said Brendan, “My dad’s probably got stuff for me to do back at the lab, so I better head back… you’re staying out here though, right?”

“Yeah,” said Mae, “I’m not gonna be back to Littleroot for a while, I don’t think.”

“Oh… well, maybe we’ll see each other around? Sometimes I run errands for my dad here and there. I’ve even been as far as Lilycove City!”

“I don’t know where that is…”

“Oh, right,” said Brendan, “It’s way far away from here, on the east side of the region. It’s a snap to get there on a flying Pokémon, though. Anyway, I’m all over Hoenn these days–maybe we’ll bump into each other somewhere?”

“Maybe,” said Mae, “I’ll catch you later, Brendan.”

“Yeah. See ya, Mae.”

And Brendan was off, walking back to Littleroot with a sort of jaunt in his step. Mae wondered what he was feeling so good about.

“Well, I guess we oughta head to the Pokémon Center,” she said. And then, realizing Beni was in his Pokéball, looked around quickly to see if anyone had noticed her talking out loud to herself. Thankfully, there was no one around. Mae headed into the Pokémon Center, cheeks flushing in embarrassment anyway.


	7. A Trainer's Path

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mae decides to check in with her father before leaving Petalburg behind.

Mae figured that she ought to say goodbye to her father before she left, or at least tell him that she had started her journey. Part of her wanted to linger in town a little bit to catch more Pokémon, but part of her didn’t want to be walking distance from home if she could help it.

Mae found herself wandering over to the gym; it was easy to find among Petalburg’s other quaint buildings. It practically loomed over the town, a giant sign with the Pokémon League logo denoting it as a Pokémon Gym. She stood in front of the door for a while, wondering if she should go in.

“Well?” said Beni. She’d let him out of his Pokéball again, “C’mon, Mae, what’re you waiting for?”

Mae took a deep breath and pushed the door open.

Inside, the gym was styled like a dojo; the walls were made of dark wood, a raised tatami mat formed the back half of the room, and the hardwood floor was so clean she could practically see her reflection in it. Two statues framed the entrance, each bearing the same League logo as the sign. Two doors awaited her, between them a scroll with a vaguely Pokéball-like calligraphy design. Standing in the middle of the tatami, back turned to her, was her father.

“Um…” she said, “Dad?”

Norman turned around to greet her.

“Oh! Mae,” said Norman, “I wasn’t expecting to see you here! Beni too!”

“Hiya Norman!” said Beni, “We’re on a journey!”

“Ah, so you must have started out this morning,” said Norman, “It will be kind of lonely coming home to one less person tonight… but as long as you’re having fun as a trainer, well, that’s more than I could ask for–as a Gym Leader, and as a father.”

“ _Dad,_ stop,” said Mae, “If you get all sappy now, I’ll never wanna leave…”

“Haha, I suppose you’re right,” said Norman, “Mae, if you want to become a strong trainer, here’s some advice: Whenever you reach a new town, seek out its Gym. You can get a good idea of how strong the trainers are in the area by battling at the Gym. Besides, having more Gym Badges can’t hurt.”

“I don’t know…” said Mae, “I don’t know if I want to challenge Gyms just yet. I want to be able to enter a league tournament someday, but right now I just want to have fun battling with Pokémon.”

“Hm,” said Norman, “You like battling, but don’t want to challenge gyms…?”

“Yeah,” said Mae, “It sounds kinda silly when you put it that way. I guess… when you win a badge, you have to train a lot and get stronger so you can win the next one. You figure out what kind of Pokémon the leader uses, and build a strategy to counter it, but in the end, it’s all just type matchups.”

“Yes, type matchups are important,” said Norman.

“I just… it sounds kinda boring, if all you need to win is a good type matchup.”

“I suppose that makes sense,” said Norman, “Mae, whatever you decide to do as a trainer, know that I support you 100%. It may be a way off, but I look forward to the day our paths cross in battle. However… I will say that you will need at least one badge, or even a contest ribbon, to earn stronger Pokémon’s respect.”

Mae nodded, but inside she wondered: _Do Pokémon really understand what badges mean?_

“I’m gonna get going, then,” said Mae. Norman nodded.

“Take care, Mae. And keep in touch if you can. You know the house phone number, right?”

“I think so.”

“Good. All Pokémon Centers have phones, so be sure to call home once in a while. Your mother will appreciate it, I’m sure.”

“I will.”

“Alright, Mae. Good luck on your journey.

“Yeah. See you, dad.”

* * *

Mae and Beni left the gym with a spring in their step. They had the whole afternoon to catch Pokémon and hone their own skills, and Mae, for one, was looking forward to it. As she headed back towards Route 102, someone called out to her.

“Excuse me!”

She turned to see a portly man coming toward her, dressed in a blue Hawaiian shirt and sporty sunglasses. He held up his hand and flashed her a toothy grin.

“Let me guess,” he said, “From the way you’re dressed, are you a Pokémon Trainer?–Or, maybe not. Now that I look at you, your clothes don’t look that dirty. You’re either a rookie trainer, or maybe just an ordinary kid. Am I right?”

“Mae’s a trainer!” said Beni loudly, “She’s not some ordinary kid!”

“Whoa-ho!” said the stranger, “Alright, alright, easy there lil’ fella. Not every day you see a talking Pokémon, though!”

“You’re not… surprised?” said Mae. She picked up Beni.

“What? Nah,” said the stranger, “This little guy isn’t the first talking Pokémon I’ve seen on my travels. I’m roaming the land in search of talented trainers–it’s no surprise that a lot of them come with talented Pokémon, too!”

“Oh,” said Mae.

“Anyway, sorry to have taken your time,” said the stranger, “You seem like you have a lot of potential, so keep at it! Maybe one day you’ll catch my eye again. Adios!”

And with that, the stranger turned tail and walked away. Mae and Beni watched him go until he turned the corner and disappeared.

“Who… who was that?” said Mae.

“What a weirdo,” said Beni, “I hope we never see him again.”

“I… kinda hope so too, to be honest.”


	8. Rustboro City

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mae makes it to Rustboro city with her Pokemon. Once there, it seems something is amiss...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m caught between wanting to write every interaction Mae has with every member of the cast/ developing ALL the relationships, and being way too lazy/placing more importance on some encounters than others. I feel like as the story goes on you’ll be seeing snapshots of Mae’s adventure, rather than a play-by-play (but I’ll be sure to include a summary of things I didn’t get to between point A and point B)

After catching several Pokémon outside Petalburg, Mae left for Rustboro the following morning. The first part of her walk took her along a hill adjacent to the beach; tall grass lined the path, and young children could be heard playing on the shore. A fisherman or two could be seen wading knee-deep into the waves, waiting patiently for a bite. She and Beni passed a pleasant-looking bungalow with a private dock and a small boat moored nearby. It was a picture of tranquility she hadn’t seen growing up in Johto–Goldenrod’s urban sprawl had overtaken what little beach they had long ago.

After battling a few trainers, Mae and Beni came to the entrance of a forest. A sign nearby denoted this place as Petalburg Woods. According to the sign, poison-type Pokémon were common in the area, and trainers should be cautious and carry antidotes with them.

“I should’ve stopped by the mart on my way out…” Mae looked at Beni nervously, “Do you think we’ll be okay?”

“We’ll be fine!” Beni reassured her, “If we see any poison-types, I’ll just roast ‘em! Bam! Pow! Like that! I won’t let any poison-type Pokémon get to us, Mae!”

Mae couldn’t help but laugh.

“Thanks, Beni.”

Side by side, the two of them walked into the forest together.

* * *

After about an hour, Mae and Beni emerged on the other side of the woods unscathed. Mae had managed to capture a buglike Nincada and a plantlike Shroomish on the way, and Beni had practically bulldozed everything else with his fire-type attacks. Mae was already amassing quite a few Pokémon, and she had the feeling she would continue to catch more. She began to wonder which ones she would keep as her main party.

“Torchic, Zigzagoon, Poochyena, Wurmple, Nincada, Shroomish…” she said to herself as she walked, “That’s six Pokémon already.”

“That’s a lot of Pokémon!” said Beni, “I bet Birch would be proud of your progress!”

“Yeah…” said Mae. Part of her worried that having a lot of Pokémon would be a lot of responsibility, but she figured that as long as she kept all of them fed and healthy, it wouldn’t be so bad.

_Plenty of trainers have way more than six Pokémon,_ she reminded herself, _some even have many hundreds! I wonder how they keep track of them all…_

The path to Rustboro took her along the edge of the forest and across a sparkling clear lake. Several trainers stopped to battle her, but she made quick work of them with Beni and Zigzagoon. Before long, she arrived in the city.

Unlike Littleroot, Oldale, and even Petalburg, Rustboro could be properly called a city. For the first time in a month, Mae found herself walking on paved sidewalks. The architecture in Rustboro was a stark contrast to that in previous towns: instead of cozy wood bungalows and shops, the buildings here were built of stone and concrete. The only patches of grass were contained in small parks or behind cast-iron fences. Ornate street lamps lined the sidewalks, and the area bustled with activity. Men in business suits were common, as were younger trainers in school uniforms.

“A city…!” Mae said, some excitement building inside her. Goldenrod had been full of things to see and places to shop; maybe Rustboro would have some kind of attraction as well. She couldn’t wait!

Mae found her way to the Pokémon Center, hoping to find some information on what to do in the area. She healed her Pokémon at the counter before heading to the brochure and magazine racks off to the side. Next to the colorful tabloids on the magazine rack, the brochure shelves seemed a little bare. Mae picked up a thick brochure titled “10 Things to See in Rustboro” and walked to sit at the glass table in the corner. Beni hopped up onto the chair next to her and peered over her shoulder at the various pictures.

“Not much of a tourist destination, huh…?” said Mae, looking over the list.  “Devon Corporation,” “Cutter’s House,” “Pokémon Trainers’ School,” and “Rustboro Gym and Museum” were the main ones. The museum, at least, sounded worth the visit. In the area there was supposedly a flower shop, a place called Meteor Falls, and a recently-completed shortcut to Verdanturf town called Rusturf Tunnel. Mae wondered if Wally had come through Rustboro to get to Verdanturf. How was he doing, anyway…?

“Well?” said Beni, “What’s it say?”

“It says Rustboro is one of Hoenn’s biggest business hubs,” said Mae, reading aloud from the brochure, “Second only to Mauville. It’s home to the Devon Corporation, Hoenn’s foremost designer and manufacturer of products for Pokémon trainers. It says they’re Hoenn’s equivalent of Silph Co… huh, that’s cool. Silph is a big name back home.”

“Boooooring,” said Beni.

“Yeah, I know,” said Mae, “According to this, most of Rustboro’s residents are Devon employees and their families, or are boarding at the trainers’ school. Man, I was hoping there’d be more to do here…”

“We could go to the gym!” Beni piped up.

“Yeah, I guess…” Mae folded up the brochure, “The gym’s supposed to have a museum, so we could go check that out.”

“Fine by me!” said Beni, hopping to his feet. Mae tucked the brochure into her fanny pack before heading out, Beni close behind.

* * *

A towering building came into view as they made their way to the gym. Mae figured that the building must be Devon’s main headquarters; men in business suits milled around outside, and it looked much fancier than the other buildings in the city. As she approached, the sound of a commotion reached her ears. A man in a striped shirt and black bandana was running away from Devon at top speed, followed by several men in suits and an older, bearded man.

“Stop! Thief!” called one of the men in business suits.

“Come back!” cried the old man, “Bring back my Peeko…!”

Mae’s curiosity got the better of her, and she ran to catch up with the group of men. The thief had already disappeared around a corner and out of sight.

“What happened?” she asked.

“We were working out a shipping deal with Mr. Briney here when that thug came out of nowhere and robbed us!” said one of the men in suits, “Those parts were supposed to go to Captain Stern in Slateport, but now, who knows _where_ they’re headed…?!”

“And that scoundrel made off with my darling Peeko!” said the old man, presumably Mr. Briney, “Wrooooooooar! Peeko!”

“Someone’s gotta do something!!” said Beni, hopping up and down, “Mae, let’s go after that guy!”

“Yeah,” said Mae, “But where was he off to…?”

“It looked like he was headed for Rusturf tunnel,” said one of the men in suits, “A few years ago it would’ve been a dead end, but now that the tunnel’s complete, that thug will probably get away…”

“We have to get those parts back before he gets too far!” Mae picked Beni up and dashed off, “Come on, let’s go!”

“But none of us have Pokémon…” the men protested.

“Well, fine! I’ll just go myself!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Many random NPC lines from RSE have stuck out to me over the years, and "Wrooooooooar! Peeko!!" is one I remember with particular clarity


	9. Team Aqua Encounter!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mae manages to catch up to the Team Aqua thug--thanks to another trainer heading him off!

Mae managed to catch up to the thug as they dashed along a forested route lined with tall grass. She dodged trainers and wild Pokémon, ignoring the stitch in her side and the ringing in her ears. As she rounded a bend, she noticed that up ahead the thug had stopped and leaned on a tree to catch his breath. Mae could make out a white and blue Pokémon under his arm, struggling to get free. He looked up, taking notice of her, and made a break for it. He ran all the way to the base of a craggy foothill and disappeared through the entrance to a cave. Mae followed him to the cave entrance before finally stopping to let her breath catch up to her.

“Mae, we gotta keep going!” said Beni, “If we stop now, he’ll get away!”

“ _You_ try running two miles without stopping!” Mae wheezed, “Gimme a minute, he can’t get _that_ far…”

Mae straightened up, taking notice of the clean-cut arch framing the cave’s entrance. “Rusturf Tunnel–Sponsored by Devon” was carved into the top of the archway.

Mae jogged inside, Beni perched on her shoulder. The cave beyond was dark and dusty, with small lights lining the path ahead. Dimly-lit signs discussed the geology and ecology of the cave, and warned trainers to step quietly so as not to disturb the local Pokémon.

“I can’t see him,” said Beni.

“Me either…” said Mae, “D’you think he made it to the other side…?”

Even as she said it, the sound of an argument reached her ears. She rounded a corner to see the thug standing opposite a blue-haired girl dressed in red and white.

“C’mon, lady, just let me through!” said the thug, “I got places to be, things to do!”

“No way,” said the girl, arms folded. Mae thought she looked not too much older than herself. “You’re from Team Aqua, aren’t you? I’d know that logo anywhere.”

“Yeah, but what of it?” said the thug, “This ain’t any of your business! Now stay out of Team Aqua’s way!”

“Do you know who I am?!” said the girl, taking a Pokéball from her bag, “Staying out of Team Aqua’s way is the _last_ thing I’m gonna do!”

“I don’t care! Look, just let me through, and there won’t be any trouble…!”

“I can tell that Pokémon isn’t yours,” the girl continued, “At the very least, let it go.”

“No way! This Pokémon is Team Aqua’s now!”

“Mae, let’s get ‘im!” Beni hissed.

“Hey, you!” shouted Mae, “You’d better give that Pokémon back, or else!”

“Huh?” the thug whirled around to face her, “This Pokémon ain’t yours either, kid! Stay out of this!”

“Yeah, but I saw you steal it! Now hand it over–along with those Devon parts!”

“Dumb brats…!” said the thug. He took two Pokéballs off his belt, “I’ll take you both on! Bring it!”

The thug opened the Pokéballs, and two Pokémon popped out: one was a Poochyena, and the other was the batlike Zubat.

“Okay, kid, let’s team up!” said the blue-haired trainer, “Trapinch, you can take this one!”

“Get ‘em, Beni!” said Mae. Beni leaped from Mae’s shoulder and took his place on the field. The blue-haired trainer threw a Pokéball, and an orange Pokémon with a huge round head appeared next to Beni.

“Beni, ember!”

“Trapinch, bite!”

Beni aimed his attack at Poochyena, shooting a stream of weak flames at his opponent. The dog Pokémon howled in pain and shook its snout to shake the embers off. Meanwhile, Trapinch raced forward and bit down on the bat Pokémon with surprising force for its size.

“Poochyena, bite! Zubat, leech life!”

Poochyena leaped to attack Beni, chomping down with powerful jaws. Beni chirped in shock and wriggled free, running to hide behind Mae’s legs. Zubat aimed its attack for Trapinch, sapping some of the orange Pokémon’s health.

“Beni, don’t give up! Ember again!”

“Trapinch, you’ve got this! Rock slide!”

Beni spat another stream of flames, this time aiming for Zubat. The bat Pokémon flapped its wings in an attempt to stop the attack, but this only made the embers burn more brightly. It took the attack directly and fell to the ground with a thump. Meanwhile, Trapinch caused a cascade of rocks to come crashing down on both opponents. Poochyena fell on top of Zubat, both unconscious. The thug recalled them.

“Y-you…!” he said, “You’ll pay for this…! If I had any more Pokémon, I’d–!”

“Oh, can it,” said the blue-haired trainer, holding out her hand, “We won, fair and square. Give back that Wingull and whatever else you took.”

The thug glared at both of them before chucking a parcel at Mae and the Pokémon at the blue-haired trainer. Then he pushed past them and made a break for it, heading toward the Verdanturf side. Neither trainer made to pursue him.

“You okay, little guy…?” said the blue-haired trainer, checking Wingull for injuries.

“I think its name is Peeko,” said Mae, “This old man was wailing about it…”

“Peeko…? Oh! You must be Mr. Briney’s Pokémon,” said the blue-haired trainer, “We’d better get you back to him right away!”

“You know Mr. Briney?” said Mae.

“Yeah,” said the blue-haired trainer, “I know a lot of people in Hoenn. My name’s Laura, by the way. Thanks for helping me out.”

“Thank _you_ ,” said Mae, “If you hadn’t been there to stop that guy, he would’ve gotten away for sure… Anyway, my name’s Mae.”

Laura knelt down and patted Trapinch affectionately before recalling it.

“I’m headed to Rustboro anyway, so wanna walk together?” Laura offered, “I’m meeting a friend for lunch, and beyond that… I need to train Trapinch a little more, so I’m trying to find trainers who’re more or less at its level.”

“Sure,” said Mae, “Maybe I can help train with you?”

“I don’t know,” said Laura, “You seem pretty strong, Mae. The way you and Torchic handled yourselves was really impressive. Trapinch is just a little guy still, so he needs less, uh, capable trainers to fight against.”

“Oh, okay,” Mae rubbed the back of her head, fingers passing over her stubby ponytail, “I only just got my Pokémon the other day, so…”

“Wow, and you’re already that good?” Laura seemed impressed, “I wouldn’t have guessed you’d only just started. C’mon, let’s walk and talk.”

The two of them set off together, Beni in Mae’s arms, and Peeko flying a short distance behind Laura. It didn’t take long before they were out of the cave and walking in daylight again.

“Who was that guy…?” Mae wondered aloud, “He was dressed like a pirate or something. Halloween isn’t for another couple months.”

Laura couldn’t help but laugh.

“I _wish_ it was just a costume,” she said, “That guy was from Team Aqua. They’re dressed a little differently than they used to be, but the ‘A’ logo on that guy’s bandana is the exact same.”

“Used to be?”

“Yeah. Team Aqua used to be a group of thugs trying to ‘expand the sea for water Pokémon’ or something like that. It was kind of a dumb plan, and it’s a good thing they never got away with it.”

“Yeah, I’ll say…” said Mae. The planet was already mostly water; what could Team Aqua need _more_ water for? “You say ‘used to be’ like they broke up, or something…”

“They did,” said Laura, “Sorta. After a couple years of terrorizing Hoenn, four years ago they gave up. Long story short, their plans failed catastrophically, and it took a really powerful Pokémon to put things right.”

“Wow…” Mae wondered what kind of Pokémon could stop an entire team of trainers.

“After that, they sort of disbanded, but not really,” Laura continued, “They ditched the stupid outfits and lame plans and started putting their energy toward marine conservation and smarter water usage. Actually, they’ve done a lot of good for Hoenn in four years…” Laura’s expression darkened, “But with this guy stealing stuff from Devon, I can’t help but worry a little…”

“Me too,” said Mae, “If they’re back to being bad guys…”

“There’s no telling what’ll happen,” Laura finished for her. She seemed particularly troubled by this, but she looked back to Mae and brightened, “I’m sure it’s nothing, though. As long as trainers like you and me keep stomping on ‘em, we’ll have nothing to worry about.”

“I hope you’re right…” said Mae. Somehow, she didn’t find Laura’s words the least bit comforting.


	10. Pokenav Plus

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Having recovered the stolen Pokemon and goods, Mae and Laura head back to Devon to see that they're returned.

Before long they were back in Rustboro, and they were met by the businessmen from before, along with Mr. Briney. Peeko flew immediately to Briney’s side, and Mae gave the parcel to one of the businessmen.

“Peeko!” Mr. Briney shouted joyfully, “Oh, Peeko, you’re alright! And–why, Laura, is that you?”

“It’s me, alright,” said Laura with a gentle smile.

“My goodness, you’ve grown!” Briney exclaimed, “Why, I haven’t seen you since you were yea high!” Mr. Briney held out his hand, indicating a height significantly shorter than Laura was now, “Peeko owes her life and freedom to you, lass!”

“It wasn’t just me,” said Laura, pointing to Mae, “Mae helped too.”

“Hm?” Briney turned to Mae, “Ah, you’re the lass who ran off to help earlier. Mae, is it? I see. Well, I sincerely thank you–and Laura, too! If there’s ever a thing I can do to help you in turn, don’t you hesitate to ask!”

“We must extend our thanks as well,” said one of the businessmen, “Without you, our project would be… well, we must do something to thank you. Come with us! I’m sure Mr. Stone would be delighted to meet with the heroes of the hour.”

“Yes,” said another, “And Mr. Briney, we’ll have to finalize that deal…”

“Aye, of course,” said Briney, “Come along now, lads! Lasses! Peeko, come sit on my shoulder, darling!”

Peeko perched on Briney’s shoulder, and the party set off for Devon headquarters. Laura and Mr. Briney talked the whole way, with Briney asking after Laura’s grandfather–Mae got the feeling that they’d known each other for a long time. She almost felt awkward following them, catching bits of their conversation as they went.

The businessmen led them into the huge Devon offices, and Mae marveled at the sleek architecture and fancy decorations. In the center of the lobby floor there was a glass window, and one could look down on fossils and other remnants of an ancient time. In fact, fossils seemed to be the theme of the Devon corporation–portraits of fossil Pokémon hung from the walls, and helix symbols were imprinted on the crown molding.

They climbed floor after floor of desks and cubicles before arriving on the top floor, where a huge office awaited them. Mae immediately got a sense of Devon’s success just looking around the office: display cases filled with rare stones lined the walls below oil paintings of long-extinct Pokemon. A wood and glass table sat in the center of the room, displaying an underwater scene of fossils and rare stones, with black leather couches positioned tastefully around it. At the back of the room was a large mahogany desk, and behind the desk sat a man who could only have been the president of Devon: who else would work in an office this luxurious?

“Hm? Ah, hello hello!” said the man cheerfully. He was a short, stout man, with curly grey hair and a friendly, dignified air about him, “Welcome. My name is Joseph Stone, and I’m the president of the Devon Corporation. I’ve just been informed that we have quite a bit to thank you for–why, if it isn’t Laura! What a surprise to see you here again!”

“Good to see you too,” said Laura as the group approached Stone’s desk. Mae looked at Laura incredulously–Briney as a family friend she could believe, but to think Laura could be chummy with the president of Devon, too? Who _was_ this girl?

“It seems we’re in your debt once again, Laura,” Mr. Stone continued, “Funny, we seem to be relying on you more often than not…”

“It wasn’t just me this time, Mr. Stone,” said Laura. She indicated to Mae, “My friend Mae helped out, too. She was the one who chased after the thug–I just happened to be in the right place at the right time.”

“I see…!” said Mr. Stone. He turned his attention to Mae, “Well, Mae, I must extend my thanks to you as well. You helped out our company, as well as rescued an innocent Pokémon… truly, you have earned our respect here at Devon. As such, I have a gift to offer as my thanks. But before that–!”

Mr. Stone turned to Laura.

“How is your Pokénav, my dear? Still functioning?”

“Yeah…” said Laura, “It’s gotten a little slow, but it still works.”

“I see,” said Mr. Stone, “In that case, I believe I have something to offer the both of you to show my gratitude.”

Mr. Stone pressed a button on his desk.

“Isabelle, bring me two Pokénav Pluses, if you would!”

“Right away, sir,” a feminine voice came over the intercom. In a few minutes, a woman entered the office carrying two small boxes. She gave them to Mr. Stone.

“Pokénav?” said Mae, “Pokénav Plus…?”

“Hm? Have you not heard?” said Mr. Stone, “The Pokémon Navigator Plus–Pokénav Plus for short–is only the _latest_ in trainer tech! A vast improvement from our first model, the Pokénav Plus does everything Pokénavs once did, and more!”

“Well, I moved here from Johto, so…” said Mae. Mr. Stone nodded in understanding.

“I see, I see,” he said, “So you must be familiar with Silph’s Pokégear, correct?”

“Yeah. My parents had them when I was growing up.”

“It’s a similar concept, in theory,” said Mr. Stone, “The Pokégear predates the Pokénav, with features that are meant for everyone, not just trainers. Such broad appeal can be useful, but here at Devon, we believe in innovation that can make Pokémon training more accessible. The idea that anyone can become a capable trainer with the right tools at hand–that’s the idea behind our Pokénav.”

“Oh, okay,” said Mae, “That makes sense.”

“To that end, we’ve worked hard to ensure that the Pokénav Plus is _the_ most indispensable tool for trainers, second only to the Pokédex!” Mr. Stone continued, “It’s an all-in-one sort of tool, made for trainers of all callings and backgrounds. The Pokédex only shows trainers stats and moves for battling–the Pokénav Plus can not only display your Pokémon’s information, it can also display contest conditions and contest movesets for each Pokémon!”

“Wow…” said Mae, though she wasn’t particularly impressed by this. She didn’t care for contests, and she already had her Pokédex to refer to when she needed to look at her Pokémon’s stats.

“That’s not all, of course,” Mr. Stone continued, noticing Mae’s disinterest, “With this iteration of the Pokénav, we at Devon have decided to go all-out with features that will be useful to every kind of trainer. Allow me to list some of the big ones for you: the AreaNav feature displays a detailed map of the Hoenn region–with friends’ Secret Bases and your berry crops all recorded for your convenience–and with the BuzzNav feature, you can keep up-to-date on the happenings in Hoenn!”

“It records Secret Bases? That sure sounds handy,” said Laura, “I have a ton of friends with Secret Bases; it’s so hard to remember where they all are.”

“That’s exactly why that feature was included,” Mr. Stone nodded, “But that’s not all we’ve added. For instance, the DexNav feature allows you to synch your Pokénav Plus with your Pokédex to seek out high-potential Pokémon in the area around you! And–my favorite feature–we’ve retained the cellular phone functionality of the original Pokénav, but now you can make phone calls face-to-face! That’s right! It’s like a tiny, portable version of the video phones that come standard in Pokémon Centers!”

Now Mae was impressed. This was powerful, convenient technology–Johto’s Pokégears had nothing on the power of the Pokénav. Devon’s innovation sure was something… it was no wonder they were considered Silph’s equal.

“All this, and you’re just giving it to me?” said Mae.

“Of course!” said Mr. Stone with a flourish, “You’ve truly helped us out today. As Laura here knows, we Stones aren’t stingy when it comes to showing gratitude! Additionally, since the Pokénav Plus only recently hit the shelves, I hope you’ll be able to recommend it to friends in the future… ah, what am I saying? Here, you two–pick whichever you like, they’re both the same.”

Laura took the box in Stone’s left hand, and Mae took the one in his right. On the cover was a picture of an orange, blue, and white folding device with a wide screen. Mae opened the box and procured the Pokénav, folded neatly with a clamshell hinge. She opened it to inspect it and powered it on, noticing a small front-facing camera above the screen. It even had what appeared to be a disk drive–for what purpose, Mae couldn’t fathom. She flipped through the different applications, and all of them seemed to be working.

“You’ll have to enter your information before you can use the Match Call function, but other than that, it’s ready to go,” said Mr. Stone proudly, “I hope it serves the two of you well! Oh, and Laura–you’ll be able to upload your contacts from your old Pokénav, so don’t worry about that!”

“Oh, good,” said Laura, “Anything else, Mr. Stone?”

“Well… You wouldn’t happen to know where my son is, would you?” said Mr. Stone with a playful smile, “I tried calling him, but he seems to be out of range.”

“This morning he said he was headed to Dewford,” said Laura, “Something about Granite Cave.”

“Oh, I see,” said Mr. Stone, “That boy, always running off to caves… I have something for him, but I suppose it can wait–although! Laura, are you busy? Maybe you ought to take it to him.”

“I am, actually,” said Laura, “I’m meeting Roxanne for lunch, so…”

“Well, in that case,” Mr. Stone turned to Mae, “Mae, I must ask you a favor, since Laura seems to be occupied. I have a parcel for my son Steven, and according to Laura he’ll be in Dewford town. I don’t suppose you know how to get there, if you’ve only just moved here…?”

“Yeah, I don’t have any idea where that is,” said Mae with a shrug.

“I can take you there, lass!” Mr. Briney piped up. Mae had forgotten he was still in the room, “I have a boat that can take you to Dewford and Slateport, if you need it. It’ll be the least I can do for you!”

“Thank you kindly, Mr. Briney,” said Mr. Stone, “If you would stay a moment after we’re done here; I’d like to wrap up that shipping proposal before you leave…”

“Aye, tis no problem at all,” said Mr. Briney. He nodded to Laura and Mae.

“Well, you two ought to be on your way–Laura, your lunch date must be soon, I’m sure,” said Mr. Stone, “Thank you once again for your trouble. Mae, here’s the package for Steven. It’s fragile, so please be careful with it.”

Mae took the parcel from Mr. Stone and slipped it into her fanny pack, padding it with her change of clothes.

“See you, Mr. Stone,” said Laura, “Thanks again for the Pokénav.”

“Yeah, thank you!” Mae added.

“No, no, thank the both of _you_ ,” Mr. Stone said, “I’ll be seeing you two. Have a good day!”

Mae and Laura made their way for the door. Mr. Briney and the businessmen came up to Mr. Stone’s desk, but Mae had already left the room before she could catch what they were saying.

“Mr. Briney will probably be done soon,” said Laura, “You can wait for him in the lobby.”

“Yeah, that was the plan.”

Laura walked with Mae all the way back to the lobby. As they walked, Mae wondered if Mr. Stone’s son was Laura’s insider connection–perhaps they’d been friends in school, or something like that. Whatever the case, Mr. Stone seemed to have known Laura for a long time. Laura wasn’t kidding when she’d said she knew a lot of people in Hoenn.

“Well, I guess this is where we say goodbye,” said Laura, “But you know something, Mae? It wasn’t too long ago that I met a close friend in circumstances like these. I see a lot of promise in you as a trainer–though I’m still learning a lot myself. I think I’d like to meet up with you again sometime, and maybe train together.”

“Yeah, that sounds great!” said Mae. Laura seemed like a good person to know. Mae took out her Pokénav Plus and took a few seconds to get the Match Call function set up. It asked for her name and Trainer ID first, and there were some optional fields she would have to mess with later–self-introduction, strategy, etc. Laura set up her own Match Call and held her Pokénav out to Mae.

“Just hit ‘send data’ when you’re ready,” she said, “It should be able to connect with infrared.”

“Okay,” said Mae, holding out her own device. After a few seconds the devices pinged, indicating that the transfer was successful. Now Mae’s otherwise blank Match Call listings had one name: Laura.

“I have to run to lunch now,” said Laura, “But let’s keep in touch, alright? And let me know if you can’t find Steven; I can get that package to him another day if you need me to.”

“Alright,” said Mae, “See you around, then!”

“Yeah. Be seeing you!”

Laura left the lobby, waving as she went. Mae watched her go, wondering when they’d cross paths again. Laura seemed to be a woman about town; there was a chance she led a pretty busy life. Maybe she was a well-known trainer? Trapinch couldn’t have been her only Pokémon.

Before long Mr. Briney came downstairs, rousing Mae from her thoughts.

“You about ready to ship out, lass?” Briney asked, “It will take a while to get to Dewford–we’ll have to trek through the woods to get to my ship.”

“That’s fine,” said Mae, standing up, “We should get moving now, then…”

Mae’s stomach rumbled uncomfortably. It was already past noon, and she hadn’t eaten since earlier that morning.

“Maybe we should stop for lunch first…” said Mae.

“I’m hungry too,” Beni added.

“Aye, then let’s make a quick stop on Sunflora Street,” said Briney, “That’s where all the good eats are. Rustboro is known for its stir-fry udon, you know!”

“The travel brochure didn’t say anything about that…” said Mae. Briney winked at her.

“It’s a local secret. Come along, Mae, Peeko! Lunch is on me!”


	11. Dewford Town

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mr. Briney gives Mae a ride to Dewford town, a tiny yet bustling island community.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I realized I never really went in-depth with Mr. Briney in Laura’s story, so the beginning of this is a quick attempt to illustrate how he’s changed in the last few years
> 
> also, it was fun to think about how tourism would change dewford town over the years

Mae, Beni, Briney and Peeko enjoyed a quick meal of stir-fried udon from a food cart on Sunflora Street. After that, they headed out for Petalburg Woods. The way back was much easier, since they could take shortcuts over low ledges, and Mae carefully helped Mr. Briney down some of the steeper ones. Once they were out of the woods, Mr. Briney’s shack was a stone’s throw away. Mae remembered it from earlier–the cute bungalow with the private dock. Mr. Briney had to take a bit to get the ship ready to sail, so he invited Mae into the house and offered her some tea.

Mae took a look around while she waited, noticing the pots in one corner, and the drawing of a fish Pokémon on the wall by the fridge. The place was sparsely decorated, but somehow still felt lived-in. Her eyes passed over a side table, on which sat a framed photo: Mr. Briney stood, smiling, next to a large pelican Pokémon. It was larger than Peeko, but somehow still looked related to her.

“Mae? Lass, you ready to go…?” Mr. Briney stepped back inside. He followed Mae’s gaze to the photo, “Ah…”

“Oh, uh,” said Mae. She downed the rest of her tea in one gulp and stood up, “I’m ready to go when you are, Mr. Briney.”

Mae made her way to the door, but Briney remained.

“My old girl Pepper,” he said distantly, “Ah, bless her little heart.”

“Huh?”

“The Pokémon in the photo there.”

“Oh…” Mae shifted her weight a little, “I’m sorry…”

“Aye, but she lived a good, long life, she did. And I have Peeko now to keep me company.”

Briney looked up and smiled kindly at Mae, his cheeks crinkling up around his eyes.

“Come along, then, Mae! The sea awaits!”

“Okay!”

Briney went out to the dock, and Mae followed. As she climbed aboard Briney’s tiny ship, she looked back towards the shore–Petalburg’s buildings could be seen in the distance. It could be a long time before she came back to this side of the region, to Petalburg and Littleroot…

“Mae?” said Beni.

“I’m alright,” said Mae.

She was on a journey as a trainer now; as soon as the boat cast off, there would be no going back. Of course, she could probably ask Briney to take her back to Petalburg afterwards, and he’d be happy to comply. Still, she didn’t like the idea of going back so soon. Even without a clear goal in mind yet, she knew one thing for sure: she wanted to get the most out of being a trainer. And to do that, she’d have to travel the whole Hoenn region.

“Anchors aweigh!” cried Briney, “Peeko, we’re setting sail, my darling!”

The boat began to move. Mae held tight to the railing, Beni nestled between her feet. The wind whipped up as they picked up speed, tossing Mae’s hair in her face. Mae could barely contain her excitement: what kind of place was Dewford town? What kinds of trainers would she find there? What battles waited for her…?

* * *

After an hour or two at sea, Briney’s ship pulled into the harbor of a sleepy-looking town on a mountainous island. Dewford town looked like something out of a postcard: its streets were lined with shacklike houses with blue-tile roofs, and its sandy beaches were dotted with fishermen and surfers. Several newer, multi-story buildings could be seen on the edge of town.

“Does Dewford get a lot of tourists?” Mae asked as Mr. Briney emerged from the rear of the boat.

“Aye, though it didn’t used to get so many,” Briney nodded, “Ever since they opened up that cave to tourists, Dewford’s become a popular vacation spot. Good for them; the extra revenue’s probably nice.”

“That cave…?” said Mae.

“Aye,” said Briney, “Granite Cave, I think it’s called. Supposedly there are some ancient cave paintings there.”

“Granite Cave… that’s where Laura said Steven would be,” said Mae, “Right, Beni?”

“I think so, yeah,” said Beni. He ruffled his feathers excitedly, “C’mon, Mae! Let’s go find him!”

“Thanks again for the ride, Mr. Briney,” said Mae.

“Oh no, thank you!” said Mr. Briney, “You’ve done so much for Peeko and me, it’s the least we could do.”

“Are you going to stick around?” asked Mae.

“Oh, yes,” said Mr. Briney, “I have some friends here I can visit, so I’ll be fine–I’ve got all the time in the world. Just let me know when you need to set sail again. We’re docked at Pier 4, so come on back here when you’re ready.”

“Okay, can do,” said Mae. She nodded to Beni, “Let’s get going, then.”

According to the map on her Pokénav, Granite Cave was just outside town to the northeast, and she would have to walk through the town to get there. She and Beni decided to stick to the main road. They passed several kitschy-looking tourist shops as they went: some sold fishing-related souvenirs, some surfing, but most shops seemed to be selling goods related to the cave paintings. Restaurants offered “Cave Painting Sandwiches” with arcane designs stamped onto the bread, or “Cave Painting Ice Cream,” chocolate ice cream swirled with fudge, served in a waffle cone printed with the same designs.

“Cave paintings sure seem to be the hot topic around here…” said Mae aloud as she and Beni passed yet another kitschy store.

“That they are, young lady!” said a loud voice. Mae turned; a man stood at the entrance to the nearest souvenir shop and flashed her a toothy grin, “Cave Paintings are the hottest thing in cool! They are the definition of ‘in’ right now!”

“Um…” said Mae, “How come I’ve never heard of them?”

“What!?” the man seemed taken aback, “You’ve never heard of them!?”

“I mean, I’m not from Hoenn… if they were that ‘in’, I think I’d have heard of them before.”

“Well, then it’s up to you to spread the word!” said the man at the shop, “How about some photo books about the paintings? Full-color, full-bleed photos printed on high quality paper, with little blurbs about the significance of each one! They make perfect gifts, too–just 4,000 Pokédollars a pop!!”

“Thanks, but I’ll pass,” said Mae, “I wanna see the paintings myself before I buy any souvenirs.”

“A wise decision,” the man nodded, “Wouldn’t want to spoil the impact before you get there! Granite Cave is just up the road a little–see that mountain in the distance there? That’s where it is. You’ll have to walk along the beach a little to get there, but there’re a bunch of signs.”

“Thanks,” said Mae.

“Have a good one!” said the man. Mae continued walking briskly, and Beni scrambled to keep up with her.

“I hate feeling like a tourist,” Mae confessed to her Pokémon as soon as she felt far enough away that the man wouldn’t hear her.

“I don’t blame you,” Beni replied.

Secretly, though, she’d been eyeing a few of the cave-painting inspired plush dolls she’d spotted in a few shop windows–she’d think about whether she still wanted one once her errand was over.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dewford is one of my favorite towns in Hoenn, and in this arc I really want to bring it to life. Dewford is canonically a place where big trends get popular quickly, and I wanted to remain faithful to that in my portrayal. I also wanted to create a “tourist trap” atmosphere that Dewford doesn’t really have in the games–but could be a natural evolution of the town once the cave paintings became popular. For this I drew on memories of my travels in Japan, specifically to Okinawa and Chichibu (hence the somewhat silly themed food). [Chichibu](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chichibu,_Saitama) was an especially helpful model because it has only come into the spotlight recently as the setting for [Anohana](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anohana:_The_Flower_We_Saw_That_Day), and Okinawa’s laid-back, tropical atmosphere was what I wanted to capture for Dewford town in general.


	12. Cave Paintings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mae makes her way into the cave, keeping an eye out for anyone named Steven...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *akihiko voice* I’ve been waiting for this

The path to the cave was marked clearly, with several signs showing the way at every turn. The cave entrance was in the side of a rocky mountain situated right on the edge of the water. Its entrance wasn’t as wide or ornate as the one to Rusturf tunnel, but Mae could tell it had been expanded by humans: the rock on either side had been carefully smoothed, and a ticket booth had been constructed just to the side of the entrance. A large sign attached to the rock above it denoted this place as Granite Cave, “Home of the famous Dewford Cave Paintings.”

There was already a line to get in. Mae waited patiently as the people ahead of her were admitted one by one; there was only space for one lane of traffic going either way, and many times they had to wait for people to leave the cave before more could be admitted. Eventually she approached the ticket booth.

“How many?” asked the lady behind the counter.

“One,” she said, “Can Pokémon come in, too?”

“Pokémon must remain in their Pokéballs in the public part of the cave,” said the lady, “Deeper parts of the cave are open to trainers, and Pokémon can be let out there.”

“Got it,” said Mae, “Sorry, Beni.”

Beni nodded, and she recalled him.

“That’ll be 100 Pokédollars to get in,” said the lady.

“Oh, that’s not bad,” Mae got out her wallet and took out a 100 Pokedollar coin. The lady stamped her hand, and Mae slipped past the ticket booth and into the cave.

The cave was dim and cool inside, lit only by the orange-tinged lights lining the floor. Particularly interesting paintings were highlighted by brighter lights, and even had signs explaining what they may have meant. There were several tour groups already crowded into the main room. Young guides explained the paintings, and the culture of the people who painted them, in greater detail. At the far end of the room there was what appeared to be a pile of debris, with a sign that read “Due to a mudslide, the deeper parts of the cave are closed.”

Mae asked around a little bit, but no one seemed to have seen Steven recently–or even knew who he was, for that matter. Mae dreaded that he’d somehow made it to the deeper part of the cave, and she wouldn’t be able to get to him.

“Oh, Steven Stone?” said a man dressed in khaki from head to toe, “Joseph Stone’s boy, right? He does mineral digs around here sometimes.”

“Have you seen him today?” asked Mae, “I have something I need to get to him…”

“Yeah, I saw him earlier,” said the man, much to Mae’s relief, “He was headed into the room with the huge mural–he sure wasn’t dressed for a dig, though. I never saw clothes so fancy in my life!”

“Thank you!” said Mae, “I’ll keep an eye out.”

Mae proceeded deeper into the cave, following a sign for the “mural room”. Aside from the paintings, everything in the cave seemed to have been put here recently. All of the lighting installations, the signs–even the tour guides were on the younger side. Mae began to wonder how long the paintings had sat here, undisturbed for thousands of years…

The winding corridor emerged into a room with soaring ceilings. Giant floodlights illuminated the back wall, where a a mural stretched from the floor to the ceiling. Various shapes were rendered in reddish-brown ink, but before long Mae recognized that they must have been stylized Pokemon. The taller Pokémon brandished its claws and belched fire to the heavens, volcanoes erupting at its feet. The other Pokémon had its fins up in the air, sending down torrents of rain and drawing huge waves up around itself. The sheer size of the mural made the terrible battle seem larger than life.

Oddly enough, there was only one other person in this room. A silver-haired man in a sharp suit stood at the base of the mural, craning his neck to take it all in. He gave off an aura of finery that seemed out of place for their dusty surroundings.

The dirt crunched under Mae’s shoes as she approached.

“Excuse me?” she said, “Are you Steven Stone, by any chance?”

The man turned around slowly, facing her with an expression of light surprise. Mae was taken aback by how young he looked–he couldn’t have been that much older than she was. Not with a face _that_ handsome…!

“I am,” said the man, “And you are…?”

“Um!!” said Mae. His tone was so kind that it caught her off guard, “I’m Mae… I helped your dad out earlier today, and he asked me to bring you this…”

Mae took the package out of her fanny pack and held it out to him.

“Oh?” said Steven. He walked forward to receive the package from her, “Why, thank you. It must have been hard to track me down all the way out here. I ought to repay you in some way… How about a TM?”

Steven reached into his pocket and took out a small CD in a plastic case.

“This one contains Steel Wing, my favorite move,” he said, “You’re a trainer, correct? I think you’ll be able to put it to good use.”

“Thanks…” Mae took the TM, trying hard not to look directly at him for too long.

“You know how to use a TM, don’t you?” he said, “Just insert the disk into a Pokénav Plus to activate it, and you can then teach your Pokémon the move.”

“Oh, so _that’s_ what the disk drive is for…” said Mae. Steven smiled.

“TMs can be used more than once now, so don’t be shy about trying them out,” he said, “When I was first starting as a trainer, TMs would break after one use.”

“What a waste,” said Mae, “It’d suck if you changed your mind after using one.”

“Indeed, especially for rarer TMs. Now, what did my father send me…?”

Steven opened the package carefully, using the peculiar pin on his lapel to tear the tape. Inside was a brand new Pokénav Plus–purple and black, rather than the yellow and orange that was standard for the device. It must have been custom made.

“Ah, that’s right,” he said, “I’d almost forgot I ordered this. My Pokénav has seen better days, so I’m glad Devon has been rolling out upgraded models.”

Steven smiled kindly at her.

“You must have one as well, if you assisted my father,” he said.

“Yeah, but–how’d you know?”

“My father is nothing if not a generous man,” said Steven, laughing gently, “He can’t help but show his gratitude in extravagant ways. Anyway, if you have a Pokénav Plus, you’ll be able to help me see if mine works.”

“Huh?”

“I want to see if the infrared is functioning properly, so let me register you as a test.”

“U-um… Sure…” Mae got out her Pokénav, head spinning.

_We just met, and he’s already asking for my number? I mean, if it’s a test it couldn’t hurt. Not that I’d mind having his number… Ah, who am I kidding? I’ll delete it later…_

Mae held out her Pokénav, selecting the Match Call app and setting it up to trade numbers. After setting up his own Match Call, Steven followed suit. Both their devices pinged–the data transfer was a success.

“Wonderful, it works,” said Steven. He folded the device and put it in his pocket, “Thank you for bringing that to me.”

Steven returned his gaze to the wall, and for a moment Mae wondered if she should take that as her sign to go. However, Steven began to speak again.

“If you don’t mind me asking…” he said, “Do you feel anything in particular when you look up at this wall?”

“Huh? Um…” Mae followed his gaze, glancing over the giant Pokémon again, “I mean… I guess it’s kinda creepy, in a way.”

“Creepy? How so?”

“I dunno…” Mae wasn’t sure how to word it, “The way those Pokémon are drawn is kind of off-putting, I guess. And they’re huge, too. It isn’t like anything I’ve ever seen before.”

Steven nodded.

“That makes sense,” he said, “Do you know the story behind this mural, Mae?”

“No…” Mae shifted her weight a little, “I just moved here from Johto, so…”

“Ah, I see,” Steven smiled at her, “I’ll explain it to you, briefly. There is a myth here in Hoenn that tells of two Pokémon of unimaginable power: Groudon, the master of the land, and Kyogre, the master of the sea. The two Pokémon waged a fierce battle for dominance of the earth. Groudon raised continents and woke volcanoes, while Kyogre churned tidal waves and carved out ocean basins. These Pokémon of tremendous power became humanity’s greatest threat. The ancient people were greatly affected by their battle, and chose to immortalize what they saw in this mural.”

“Wait,” said Mae, “Groudon and Kyogre… they’re just myths, right? A Pokémon that strong couldn’t really…?”

“It makes perfect sense to think that,” said Steven, “Pokémon with the power to shape the earth itself… something like that seems unbelievable, doesn’t it?”

“Yeah…”

“I also thought so at first. There was a time when I thought that Groudon and Kyogre only existed in the artists’ imaginations, as metaphors for natural forces the ancients couldn’t explain. But I no longer believe that. Instead, it seems much more likely that the ancients really did witness that cataclysmic battle.”

“Why’s that?” asked Mae, “Did something happen? Did they find a Groudon fossil, or something?”

“Something like that,” said Steven, “At any rate, Groudon and Kyogre had power that would amaze people even today–to the ancients, that power must have seemed even more awe-inspiring. The terror aroused by that power is clear to see in this ancient artwork.”

“Yeah…” Mae looked up again, drawing her arms around herself, “I get chills just looking at it…”

“Me too,” said Steven, “But you know, Mae, not all power is terrible. Other legends exist of Groudon and Kyogre coming to humanity’s aid–and those legends are no less vaild than the ones attached to this painting.”

“Really?” said Mae, “That’s interesting, that Groudon and Kyogre are both heroes and villains depending on who you ask…”

“Well, I wouldn’t put it in such terms, but at the core of it I agree,” said Steven, “When trying to understand ancient Pokémon like these, it’s important to take the varying accounts into consideration. These legendary Pokémon were multifaceted and complex in many of the same ways we are.”

Steven laughed to himself.

“Surely I’ve talked your ear off by now, so I’ll leave it there for today,” he said, “Thank you for indulging me a little. It was interesting to hear your thoughts.”

“Oh, no problem!” said Mae, “You really know a lot about this stuff. Are you studying Hoenn mythology?”

“Hm? Oh, no,” Steven shook his head, “My main interests are rocks and Steel-type Pokémon, so I travel here and there. I came here intending to look for Steel Pokémon, but since the deeper parts are closed, I decided see the paintings again. I suppose I ended up getting a little caught up in nostalgia–I haven’t been here since before the cave was open to the public. It’s changed quite a bit in that time… but these paintings remain the same as ever.”

“Ah,” said Mae. She wondered what the cave was like back then–surely darker than it was now, without all the floodlights and signs. The paintings must have seemed all the more eerie by flashlight.

“I must be going now,” said Steven, “But I hope we meet again somewhere, Mae.”

“Me too,” said Mae, but then added, “Uh–see you around!”

Steven smiled at her one last time before turning and heading back out of the cavern. Mae watched him go, realized she was staring, and quickly looked elsewhere. She let him get a head start before leaving the cave herself, determined not to bump into him again if she could help it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tried something a little different with the art this time; usually I just link to it on dA/tumblr at the end so it's unobtrusive, but since it was inserted into the middle of the original post on wordpress, I decided to import that here as-is.
> 
> In case for whatever reason something happens to the server I'm hosting that on, you can find this chapter's illustration on deviantart [here](https://quilofire.deviantart.com/art/first-meeting-517255926).


	13. Stranded

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mae returns from Granite Cave, only to discover she'll be staying on the island a little longer than she'd anticipated.

To Mae’s relief, Steven was long gone by the time she emerged from the cave. She let Beni out of his Pokéball, and the two of them walked together along the beach. The late afternoon sun sparkled on the water, and the occasional salty breeze came as a relief from the summer heat. Mae watched some surfers absentmindedly as they walked, kicking up sand.

“You okay, Mae?” asked Beni.

“Yeah… Just thinking is all.”

The paintings from the cave had been seared into her memory–the ancient Pokémon’s staring eyes haunted her every time she blinked. Steven had hinted that Pokémon like that really did exist… maybe they still lurked somewhere in Hoenn today.

“I hope I never meet a Groundon or a Kyorc or whatever!” said Mae out loud, stretching lazily, “Scary Pokémon like that can stay in their legends, thanks very much.”

“A what?” said Beni.

“Never mind,” said Mae.

“Don’t worry, Mae!” said Beni, “I won’t let a scary Pokémon get you!”

Beni puffed himself up, but he failed to watch where he was walking and tripped on a rock. He landed face-first in the sand. Mae giggled before going to help her Pokémon to his feet. He tried to pretend  nothing had happened, though Mae could tell his pride was hurt a little.

“That scary Pokémon won’t be any match for you,” said Mae teasingly. This seemed to lighten Beni’s mood somewhat.

“You think so, Mae?”

“Yep. You’ll knock ‘em flat!”

“You bet I will!!” Beni hopped up and down, “Oooh, now I’m really itching for a battle! Let’s go find a trainer, Mae!”

_Where does he get all this energy?_ Mae found herself wondering as she watched him, _I wonder if he’ll mellow out when he evolves…_

“I bet there’ll be plenty of trainers at the Pokémon Center,” Mae suggested, “Let’s head there first.”

“Okay!!”

* * *

On the way back to the Pokémon Center, Mae couldn’t help wandering into one of the kitschy gift shops to peruse their selection of Pokémon dolls-–despite Beni’s protests. Mae recognized Groudon and Kyogre among other unfamiliar, abstract designs: their larger size and distinct features made them stand out. After a few minutes of internal debate, Mae settled on Kyogre. The plush dolls were decidedly cuter than the mural they were based on; maybe having a cute Kyogre would help dispel the eerie feeling that still lingered from earlier.

After making her purchase and awkwardly stuffing her new doll into her fanny pack, Mae made her way to the Pokémon Center. There weren’t many trainers around, even this late in the afternoon. She walked over to the brochure rack to see if there was anything else to do, but aside from the cave paintings and surfing, Dewford didn’t seem to have much else to offer.

“Well?” said Beni, “Now what?”

“I dunno,” said Mae, “If there’s nothing to do, maybe we should just ask Mr. Briney to take us to Slateport.”

“Yeah, this place is boring,” said Beni, “The sooner we go someplace cool, the better!”

Mae picked up her Pokémon and headed back outside. The dock where Briney had dropped them off wouldn’t be too far from the Pokémon Center. It occurred to her that Briney might be away from the boat, visiting his friends–but she figured it wouldn’t hurt to check the dock first just in case.

The dock was empty when she arrived. Briney’s ship was nowhere in sight. Mae checked to see if she had the right dock number–she was pretty sure he’d let her off at Pier 4, which was the one she was currently standing on. Aside from a gruff old man sitting on a plastic lawn chair and fishing off the dock, there was nobody there.

“E-excuse me…?” said Mae, approaching the fisherman, “I’m looking for a Mr. Briney…?”

“Hm?” the old man turned to face her, lifting the brim of his hat for a better look, “Ohh, Briney. Are you May? I have a note for you.”

The man held out a piece of paper, and Mae took it from him.

_May,_

_I got a last minute call from Mr. Stone about delivering something urgent, so I had to go to Slateport on short notice. I’ll probably have to stay there overnight, but I’ll be back to pick you up tomorrow morning. Sorry, lass! Have fun in Dewford!_

_Mr. Briney_

“He spelled my name wrong…” Mae muttered to herself. She supposed she should cut the man some slack; she never had told him outright how to spell it.

“Well?” said Beni, “What’s it say? What’s it say?”

“We’re stuck here overnight,” said Mae.

“Whaaaat?!” said Beni.

“Ugh, just our luck…” Mae crumpled the note and stuffed it into her pocket, “Thanks for letting me know, though. Uh… Sir?”

The man had gone back to fishing, ignoring her completely. Mae looked down at Beni.

“This sucks,” said Beni, “I don’t wanna be stuck here.”

“Me either,” said Mae, “But we might as well make the most of it. Maybe there’ll be a trainer on the beach we can fight…?”

“I hope so!” said Beni, “I wouldn’t be half as mad if I had something to beat up!”

Mae left the pier in a huff, trying hard not to feel too down. She supposed she could try her luck at the gym, but not even that could entice her. Besides, it was getting pretty close to dinnertime. The gym would likely be closing soon.

She didn’t really keep track of where she was headed, and before long Mae found herself on an empty beach. Strong waves pounded the shore, powered by winds blowing in from the open sea. The water was much too rough for fishermen, and the huge waves would have threatened sunbathers, too. It might have been a good spot for surfers… Mae wondered why she couldn’t see any.

Mae sat down in the sand, Beni on her lap. The wind whipped her hair and clothes, and she found herself shivering a little. The sun was dipping low in the sky behind her, though it wouldn’t set for another couple of hours, at least.

“Now what…?” She knew it was futile to say something like that out loud.

The sound of footsteps in the sand behind her caught her ears, and she glanced over her shoulder. A young, blue-haired man with a surfboard was approaching, accompanied by a fat yellow Pokémon carrying a duffel bag. The man took notice of her, lifting his sporty orange sunglasses up to his forehead.

“Hey there!” he said, “It’s not often I get company on this beach. What brings you out here?”

“Huh? Well…” Mae tried to come up with a short explanation, “I was bored, so I wandered around and ended up here.”

“I see!” said the man, “I thought I’d ask ‘cuz you don’t usually see tourists out here. It’s always windy, and the waves are so gnarly, even advanced surfers have a hard time.”

“Yikes…” said Mae, eyeing his surfboard, “And I don’t suppose you’re going to give it a try anyway?”

“Heck yeah!” said the man, “I surf here all the time! It’s the only beach you can count on being empty. All the other beaches have gotten so crowded with tourists lately–-Oh, uh, I’m Bryce, by the way, but everyone just calls me Brawly.”

“Mae. Nice to meet you.”

Brawly smiled-–the kind of smile that seemed to light up his whole face.

“Can you keep an eye on Makuhita for me?” he asked, indicating to his Pokémon, “I’m gonna catch a couple waves.”

“Sure thing!” said Mae. Makuhita took a seat next to her, and Brawly flicked his sunglasses back over his eyes before jogging down to the water.

It was immediately apparent that Brawly had been surfing his whole life. He approached the crashing waves without even flinching, fearlessly paddling out into the rough water. Mae watched as he caught a few waves: he had a sense of balance that would make a ballerina jealous, and directed his surfboard with the skill of a professional. It was the kind of performance Mae thought only existed in movies.

It was a while before Brawly finally wiped out, a huge wave taking him by surprise and knocking him off his board. Dripping wet and covered in sand, he made his way back to where Mae sat with an embarrassed grin on his face.

“Well?” he said as soon as he was close enough for Mae to hear, “What’d you think?”

“You make it look so easy,” Mae commented. Brawly laughed.

“It’s taken me _years_ to get here,” he assured her, “I only just started surfing this beach last year. Or, I only just started _successfully_ surfing this beach. I’ve wiped out here more times than I can count.”

“Hita!” Brawly’s Pokémon piped up.

“Do you take your Pokémon out on the water, too?” asked Mae.

“Sometimes,” Brawly replied, “Not on _this_ beach, that’s for sure!”

Brawly knelt down to take a towel out of Makuhita’s bag. He threw it over his head and rubbed his hair vigorously.

“My Pokémon are better at battling than surfing,” said Brawly, emerging from under the towel after a few minutes, “Surfboards were made for people, so Pokémon sometimes have trouble balancing on ‘em.”

“So you’re a trainer, then?”

“Huh? Of course!”

“Hey, Mae,” said Beni, “Let’s battle him!”

“Whoa, slow down there, lil’ fella!” Brawly wrung out his shirt, “I’d love to battle, but let me dry off at least, will you?”

“Go ahead,” said Mae. She put Beni on the ground and got to her feet, brushing the sand off her shorts. After a few minutes, Brawly had dried himself off–or at least gotten his clothes and hair down to “mildly damp”.

The two trainers stood opposite each other on a stretch of sand about fifteen feet apart. Mae waited to send in her first Pokémon, wondering what Pokémon Brawly would lead with.

“Just a heads up,” said Brawly, “My guys and I have been churned by Dewford’s rough currents, and have grown stronger together in the deepest parts of Granite Cave. If you wanna challenge me, you’d better be ready to show me what you’re made of!”

“That’s a challenge I’ll gladly take,” Mae took a Pokéball from her belt, “Bring it on!”


	14. Beach Battle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mae takes on Brawly in battle, discovering that he's quite a bit tougher than she thought.

“Alright!” said Brawly, “Machop, you’re up first!”

Brawly tossed a Pokéball, and a human-like Pokémon popped from it. The Pokémon took a fighting stance, rocking back and forth on its heels and holding its fists out in front of it. Mae had seen this Pokémon at home in Johto: it was a pure fighting-type, with a knack for punching and kicking attacks. Aside from Beni’s Peck, Mae didn’t have any Pokémon that had a direct advantage to fighting-types. She didn’t know what other Pokemon Brawly had–but judging by his nickname, she guessed he favored fighting-types. She’d have to make things up as she went to prevent her relying too much on Beni.

“Alright, then I’ll go with Shroomish!”

Mae tossed a Pokéball, and her plantlike Shroomish popped from it. The Pokémon shook itself before staring down its opponent bravely.

“Machop, start off with bulk up!”

“Shroomish, stun spore!”

Machop tensed its muscles to bulk itself up, strengthening its attack and defense power. Shroomish shook itself violently, releasing toxic yellow spores from the top of its head. The spores flew towards Machop and engulfed it, dulling the Pokémon’s nerves.

“That oughta slow it down!” said Mae, “Now, Shroomish, mega drain!”

“Machop, low kick!”

The numbing spores made Machop’s movement’s sluggish, letting Shroomish get the first move. The grass-type Pokémon shot thin vines at its opponent, penetrating just slightly under its skin. These vines sucked up some of Machop’s health, awarding it to Shroomish. Machop struggled to get ahold of itself, and it swung an uncoordinated kick for Shroomish. The mushroom Pokémon quickly withdrew its vines and rolled out of the way.

“Machop!” cried Brawly, “You can do it, lil’ dude! Karate chop!”

“Shroomish, keep it up! Mega drain!”

Shroomish repeated its earlier attack, sapping up Machop’s health. The fighting-type Pokémon swiftly brought the side of its hand down on the vines, and Shroomish recoiled with a pained yelp.

“Shroomish, are you okay?” asked Mae. The Pokémon turned back and nodded to her, “Alright, then let’s try one more mega drain!”

“Machop, low kick!”

Shroomish executed its draining attack, and Machop tried feebly to swat the vines away. The spores’ effects were beginning to spread, and the fighting-type Pokémon couldn’t do much more than lose its balance and fall to the ground.

“Argh…!” said Brawly, “C’mon, Machop, pull it together! Low kick!”

“We got this, Shroomish! Mega drain one last time!”

Machop struggled back to its feet, but the damage was already done. Shroomish shot one last pair of vines at its opponent and drained away the last of its health. Machop fell face-first into the sand, defeated.

“Oh no! Machop wiped!” Brawly recalled it, “You did good, buddy. Take a little break for now.”

“Good job, Shroomish!” said Mae, “You deserve a rest too.”

Shroomish looked at her and smiled happily. Mae recalled it.

“You may have won this round, but we’re just getting warmed up!” said Brawly, “Meditite, you’re up next!”

Brawly tossed a Pokéball, and another humanlike Pokémon popped from it–this one blue and white, with big dark eyes. It took the same stance Machop had earlier, bracing itself for battle.

“A Meditite…?” Mae had heard of them, but never seen one. She took out her Pokédex to identify it for her.

_“Meditite. Meditate Pokemon. Type: Fighting/Psychic. Meditite undertakes rigorous mental training deep in the mountains, heightening its inner energy through meditation. It survives on just one berry a day. Minimal eating is another aspect of this Pokémon’s training.”_

“Yikes, that sounds intense…” said Mae, “But if it’s a psychic-type, then I’ll use Nincada!”

Mae threw a Pokéball, and her bug-like Pokémon appeared before her. Nincada was much smaller than its opponent, but it braced itself fearlessly for battle.

“Alright, Meditite, you know what’s up! Bulk up” said Brawly.

“Nincada, leech life!”

Meditite tensed its muscles, hoping to add a little more bulk to its small size. Nincada wasted no time in attacking, rushing forward and biting down on Meditite’s arm. With Meditite’s two types both resistant to and weak to Nincada’s bug-type move, the attack did average damage.

“Looks like you favor health-recovery moves, eh?” said Brawly, “Dish out damage to the foe, and cover your own behind at the same time. Not a bad strategy!”

“I guess?” said Mae. She hadn’t picked both mega drain and leech life on purpose–leech life would have done more damage than Nincada’s other moves, and mega drain was the strongest attack Shroomish could use, “They’re not bad to have around.”

“Well, _two_ can play that game!” said Brawly, “Meditite, drain punch!”

Meditite leaped forward, throwing a wild punch at Nincada. As the attack made contact, Nincada cried out in pain–it could feel its health being sucked out through Meditite’s fist.

“Oh no! Nincada!” said Mae, “We’ll have to hurry! Leech life it right back!”

Nincada retaliated, chomping down on Meditite’s hand. It got back a fraction of the health it had lost, but Mae knew it wouldn’t be enough if Meditite kept using drain punch. At the same time, Nincada wasn’t very strong, and its other attacks would be mostly ineffective on a fighting-type Pokémon. Leech life was the only way to go.

“Now, Meditite! Tighten up your focus!”

Meditite put its hands to its forehead, slowly blocking out all sources of distraction. Mae had seen this move before–the Pokémon would focus its mind, then unleash a powerful punch on the next turn. But if she could land a hit in that time…!

“Nincada, leech life again!”

Nincada moved quickly, biting down on its opponent’s shoulder. Meditite broke its focus, staggering to the side as Nincada jumped back.

“Not bad, Mae,” said Brawly, “Looks like you’ve seen Focus Punch used before!”

“Well, only on TV….”

“Alright, Meditite, this time use reflect!”

“Nincada, leech life one more time!”

Meditite threw up a psychic barrier around itself, upping its defenses. Nincada barreled forward and hit Meditite one more time, sucking up the last of its health. Meditite collapsed on the ground, and Nincada scuttled back to Mae’s side.

“Good job, Nincada!” said Mae.

“Ack! C’mon back, Meditite!” said Brawly. He recalled his Pokémon, “I underestimated you, Mae. You’re not too shabby! But you still have yet to face the strongest Pokémon I’ve got–-Makuhita!”

Makuhita pounded its glovelike fists together and let out an excited cry.

“C’mon back, Nincada!” Mae held out Nincada’s Pokéball, drawing the bug Pokémon back inside, “Well, guess I better let my strongest guy fight, too! Beni, you’re up!”

“Yeah! It’s my turn!” said Beni. He leaped forward, facing Makuhita squarely. Makuhita was much bigger than he was, and for a second Mae worried that Beni wouldn’t be able to stand up to it. But she’d seen Beni take on larger Pokémon before.

“Alright, Beni, I know you can do this!” said Mae, “Let’s see…”

_His other Pokémon both knew bulk up, and he had them use that move first. He’ll probably take a turn to buff, so we could score an extra turn of damage, or respond with a buff of our own…_

“Beni, start off with focus energy!”

“Makuhita, we’ll go with bulk up!”

Both Beni and Makuhita held their ground. Beni lowered his head, focusing his mind. Makuhita stretched and swung its arms around, readying its body.

“Alright, Makuhita! Arm thrust!”

“Beni, ember!”

Beni spat a stream of small flames at its opponent, and Makuhita recoiled in pain. The tubby Pokémon then threw its weight forward, jabbing at Beni with its forearm. Beni tried to get out of the way, but Makuhita’s hit landed–once, twice, three times.

“Ack! Beni!” said Mae, “Guess we ought to break out the big guns early! Beni, use peck!”

“Makuhita, vital throw!”

It was a risky move–Mae had seen it used in Indigo League tournaments. The user would attack last, but the attack couldn’t miss. Makuhita took Beni’s super-effective peck attack, but stood its ground. It grabbed Beni with both its arms and lobbed the bird Pokémon up and over its head. Beni landed with a sandy _thud_ behind it.

“Oh no, Beni!” said Mae. Beni scrambled to get back to her side of the field, “You okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine!” said Beni. He shook sand out of his feathers, “We got this, Mae!”

“As long as we have peck, we’ve still got the advantage,” said Mae, “So let’s keep on using peck!”

“Makuhita, hang in there!” said Brawly, “This time use reversal!”

Beni dashed forward and delivered his attack, but Makuhita seemed to have been waiting just for that. It grabbed Beni by the legs and spun him around, launching him clean across the field. Beni landed headfirst in the sand, and he struggled to get himself back out.

“Whoa, what was that move…?!” said Mae.

“Reversal gets stronger as the user gets weaker,” said Brawly, “It’s great for turning the tide in battle!”

“Yikes,” said Mae, “If we get hit by another reversal, we’re boned.”

By now Beni had plucked himself from the sand. He stood at Mae’s feet, waiting for orders. Mae racked her brains, carefully considering her next move.

_It can’t need much more than one peck, but we can’t risk getting hit by reversal again. Think, Mae…_

Beni shook his head vigorously, shaking sand out of his feathers.

_That’s it!_

“Beni, use sand attack!” she said.

“Makuhita, let’s finish it off! Reversal!”

Beni moved first; he kicked sand at Makuhita, trying to impair its vision–but with the Pokémon’s eyes normally shut tight, the attack was ineffective. Makuhita walked forward, readying its attack…

“It’s not working!” cried Beni.

“Well, if you can’t blind it, use the sand to hide!” said Mae.

“Ohh, I getcha!”

Beni started kicking his feet and flapping his wings to stir up a cloud of sand. There was certainly no shortage of _that_ on the beach. Soon Beni was completely engulfed in a sand cloud, and Makuhita had trouble following his movement.

“What the–!” said Brawly, “C’mon, Makuhita!”

“Now, Beni!” said Mae, “Peck!”

Beni leaped out of the sand cloud, taking Makuhita by surprise and jamming his beak into its stomach. Makuhita stumbled backwards before falling flat on its back, sand flying up around it. For a second there was some silence. Makuhita didn’t recover.

“Aw man!,” said Brawly, recalling his Pokémon, “Good job, Makuhita. I’m all out of Pokémon, so I guess that means you won, Mae.”

“We did it!!” said Beni. He leaped into Mae’s arms, and Mae hugged him tightly. His feathers were full of sand, but Mae didn’t care. This had been their most difficult battle yet, and they’d somehow pulled through. All the minor details seemed trivial in comparison.


	15. Invitation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After winning her battle against Brawly, Mae is approached by a familiar face...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter marks the first mention of Battle Tents, which I decided to bring over from Emerald despite this technically being an Alpha Sapphire fic, haha... They work a little differently in this universe, though!

“Wow, Mae!” said Brawly, “I gotta say it, you’re a lot tougher than I expected!” He put his hand behind his head and quickly added, “Not that I was expecting it to be easy…”

“Nah, it’s fine,” said Mae, “I know what you meant.”

“You know, you’re really good at this,” said Brawly, “Using sand attack back there was a pretty smart move. How long have you been a trainer?”

“Oh, uh…” Mae smiled in embarrassment, “I just got my first Pokémon a couple of days ago, actually…”

“A couple of days?!” Brawly’s sunglasses nearly fell off his face, “Mae, that’s so rad! To think that you’ve come this far in just a few days… I can see your talent making waves in the battling community someday!”

“Ah, um–thanks!” Mae replied. She never had been good at handling compliments.

“Are you planning on pursuing Gym Badges?” Brawly asked, “Just between you and me, I think you could take on Dewford’s Gym and swamp it, easy.”

“You mean it?” said Mae.

“For sure!” said Brawly, smile widening, “After all, you’ve already given the Gym Leader a run for his money!”

Mae stared at him for a second before it hit her.

“Wait… _you’re_ the Gym Leader?!”

“That’s me! Though, I can’t give you a badge since it wasn’t an official match… ”

“Why didn’t you say something earlier?!” said Mae.

Brawly shrugged.

“Eh, didn’t feel like making a big deal out of it,” he said, “I haven’t been a Gym Leader for very long, anyway.”

“Ah.”

“But honestly, I think you should challenge some gyms!” Brawly continued, “The League could use some fresh talent like you!”

“I… don’t know about that, honestly,” said Mae.

“Oh?”

“I mean, it’s my dream to challenge a regional champion someday,” Mae’s thoughts wandered briefly to the poster of Lance tacked onto her door, “But every time I think about going through eight gyms to get there, I get a little disheartened, I guess?”

“Yeah, I get you,” said Brawly, “It’ll be a long, tough climb to get there, for sure.”

“Oh, I mean, it can take as long as it takes! That part’s fine,” said Mae, “I don’t really mind the challenge, either. It’s just… each gym has the same setup, right? You fight a bunch of trainers, fight the gym leader in a single battle, you win, you get a badge, you start training for the next one. I like battling, but having fight after fight like that just seems… repetitive.”

“Hmm, I see,” Brawly had his chin in his hand now, listening attentively, “You know… If you like battles but think gyms will get boring, I heard that there’s a new attraction in Slateport for up-and-coming trainers like you.”

“That’s right!”

Mae and Brawly jumped and turned toward the source of the third voice. A portly man dressed in a hawaiian shirt and khaki shorts was approaching, sandals tossing up sand as he went.

“Mae!” Beni hissed through his beak, “That’s the guy from yesterday!”

“Oh yeah…” said Mae. She remembered the portly man’s rudeness, that’s for sure.

“Sorry to interrupt,” said the man cheerily, “I noticed you guys battling, and I couldn’t help sticking around to watch! You were both fantastic!”

“Uh…” said Brawly, “Thanks, but… who’re you, dude?”

“Oh! Sorry about that. Let me introduce myself," said the man. "My name’s Scott. I’ve been traveling everywhere in search of outstanding trainers. More specifically, I’m looking for Pokémon battle experts–the cream of the crop!”

“Alright, alright,” said Brawly, “Seems legit.”

“Hm…” Scott turned his gaze to Mae, “Haven’t we met before? I think yesterday, in Petalburg City.”

“Yeah,” said Mae.

“So! You’ve already made it to Dewford town! I’m impressed!” Scott nodded to himself, “And you bowled over Dewford’s Gym Leader without breaking a sweat! But what’s this I hear about you having no interest in gyms?”

“Well, you heard right,” said Mae, “It’s not that I’m not interested, it’s just…”

“You’d rather have _interesting_ battles, am I right? Battles that really test your mettle as a trainer? No offense, Mr. Gym Leader.”

“None taken,” said Brawly.

“Interesting battles…” said Mae, “Like the kind where you think you’re going to lose, but you manage to pull off a win anyway?”

“That’s the spirit!” said Scott, “Girl, have I got an invitation for you! New battling facilities are popping up in select cities across Hoenn: Battle Tents! What is a Battle Tent, you ask? Well… I’d hate to spoil the surprise! I’ll let you find out for yourself!”

Scott reached into his pocket and procured a crumpled piece of paper, which he handed to Mae.

“Sorry it’s a little beat up, but that’s an early-entry ticket to the Slateport Tent!” said Scott, “The tents are invitation-only right now since there’s still stuff to sort out, but just show that at the door and you can walk right in!”

Mae looked at the ticket in her hand. It was printed on stationery with a blue triple Pokéball logo in the center. Aside from the wrinkles, it certainly looked official.

“I’ll have you know, I don’t hand those out willy-nilly!” Scott continued, “I only give those to trainers who show real talent–-and real potential, in your case!”

“T-thank you…”

“The tents’ grand opening will be in a couple months, so you should use that as soon as you’re ready!” said Scott, “In the meantime, why don’t we trade Pokénav info?”

“Huh?” said Mae, “Why?”

“Well,” said Scott, “What I’d like to do is tag along with you, but I do want to keep an eye on the talents of other people, too. I’m gonna keep roaming from town to town, but this way, I can cheer you on even if I’m not around!”

“Uh…” Mae looked at Beni. Her Pokémon shook his head, but Mae shrugged, “Sure, why not?”

“I wanna get your number too, Mae!” said Brawly, “I’d love to battle you again sometime–-with my _usual_ team!”

Mae knew from her father that Gym Leaders, and even Gym trainers, were expected to keep several different teams of Pokémon. Since trainers started out from towns across the region, each Gym had to be prepared for trainers of varying skill levels. Her father had four teams, and he used each of them depending on his opponent’s number of badges. Mae wondered what kinds of Pokémon Brawly kept on his “usual” team…

Scott held up the Pokénav Plus hanging around his neck–this one red and yellow. Mae and Brawly took out their Pokénav Pluses, and the two men exchanged numbers with Mae. At this rate, Mae was going to have a very long list of contacts.

“Well, I’d better get going!” said Scott, hanging the device back on his neck, “Lots to do, you know! I’ll see you around, Mae. Adios!”

With that, Scott jogged away, presumably off to find another trainer to tail. Mae and Brawly looked at each other, neither saying anything until Scott was far away.

“Man, I’m bushed,” said Brawly. He picked up his surfboard, “That was enough excitement for one day, I think. Hey Mae, wanna walk back to the Pokémon Center with me?”

“Sure!” Mae replied. She bent down to pick up Beni, “After that day of running around, I can’t wait to get some R&R…”

* * *

The three of them walked back to the Pokémon Center together, chatting about various things. Mostly, Mae told Brawly about her first full day as a trainer, which Brawly thought was an incredible feat (“You walked from Petalburg to Rustboro, fought off Team Aqua, _and_ spent time in Granite Cave? You’re off to a running start, huh?”) When Mae mentioned Laura and Steven, Brawly’s face lit up.

“Oh man, you’ve met them?” he grinned, “They’re good friends of mine. Laura is crazy strong, and Steven’s not too shabby either. We used to hang out sometimes when we were younger. Actually, I haven’t talked to Laura in a while. I wonder what she’s up to these days…?”

After healing their Pokémon at the counter at the Pokémon Center, the two of them parted ways. Mae walked over to the yellow couches, wondering if she ought to get in another battle before dinner. A small TV sat on a table near the wall, blaring with a program about Pokémon Contests. Mae sat down and took out her Pokédex, listening only absentmindedly to the TV.

“… recently secured a position in the upcoming Hoenn Grand Festival, making this your second Grand Festival appearance to date.”

“That’s right!” the purple-haired man on the screen winked into the camera, “And this time, I'm playing to win!”

“We don’t mean to snoop, but at your last Grand Festival appearance a few years ago, you entered in the Doubles category alongside your then-girlfriend, former champion Laura.”

“Now, now, that’s not a part of my past I like to bring up…” the purple-haired man playfully held a finger to his lips.

“The two of you made a pretty terrifying pair!" said one of the interviewers. "But we noticed Laura hasn't made any contest appearances since that Grand Festival. If it’s too personal, you don’t have to answer, but we here at the studio were wondering: what made your champion-level combination fall apart?”

“Oh honey, are you kidding me?” said the purple-haired man, waving a hand nonchalantly, “You didn't think I teamed up with her because I  _liked_ her, did you?"

"Well, you  _did_ announce you were dating..."

"Please! That girl was a mess. I’ve never seen a more washed-up celebrity in my life, and I’ll have you know, I read _a lot_ of tabloid garbage. The second she seemed interested in me, I knew I had a shot for my own fifteen seconds of fame. We all do stupid things when we’re young, right?”

“So true!” said the interviewer, “It may not have been the best plan, but it sure worked!”

“Right?” said the purple-haired man, “Here I am on TV, after all! Hi, mom!”

“Ew,” said Mae, “What a jerk.”

“Yeah,” said Beni, “I’d like to give that guy a piece of my mind!”

Mae wondered if the Laura he’d mentioned was the same one from earlier. If Laura really had been the champion once, it would explain how everyone seemed to know who she was.

“Eh,” Mae shrugged to herself, “If she wanted me to know something like that, she would’ve told me. It’s probably not even the same Laura.”

“Huh?” said Beni.

“Never mind,” said Mae, “Wanna get some food? I’m starving.”

“Me too!” said Beni, “I thought you’d never ask!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The mention of the purple-haired man at the end is referring to [Harley](https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Harley), who was one of my favorite anime characters of the day back when I was first writing about Laura as a young teen. There was in fact a fic where they dated (and genuinely liked each other), but, as with everything i wrote at that age, it's practically unreadable now. I decided to keep that part of Laura's past somewhat intact, though changing Harley's motivations to be more in-character. This detail will literally never be relevant again; i just included it for personal closure lmao


	16. Slateport City

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mae and Beni make their way to Slateport City...

Mr. Briney was back in Dewford the following morning, and he apologized profusely for leaving Mae stranded. They set sail for Slateport just after breakfast, and arrived at the port city a little before lunch. Briney docked his ship at a beachside pier, not far from an area roped off for swimming.

“I’m afraid I have to be getting back to Petalburg now,” said Briney, “What with Mr. Stone countin’ on me and all.”

“It’s fine,” said Mae. She didn’t expect to be heading back to Dewford or Petalburg anytime soon, “Thanks for giving me a lift, Mr. Briney.”

“It was no trouble at all,” Briney smiled, “If you ever need a ride again, just call on Peeko and me and we’ll be there. Oh, I know! Let’s register each other with that newfangled Pokénav, or whatever it’s called. My granddaughter showed me how to use one, but I’m not good with gadgets…”

Briney got out a round, older looking device–this must have been a previous model of Pokénav. Mae worried that it wouldn’t be able to communicate with hers, but at least its interface was easy to navigate. It took a few tries, but she managed to get their devices to trade information.

“I’ll see you around, Mr. Briney!” said Mae.

“Aye. Best of luck to you, lass!”

Mae waved goodbye, and she and Beni set off down the pier. The pier led down to a sandy beach lined with umbrellas and lawn chairs, and the city rose up along the edge of the sand. Kids wearing bathing suits and inner tubes built sand castles while their mothers watched from not too far away. A couple of trainers could even be seen having battles. Mae got a little fired up watching them.

“Mae, we should battle them, too!” said Beni.

His stomach growled loudly. Mae laughed.

“Maybe we should find us some lunch first, huh?”

“Y… eah…”

Luckily, there was a small snack shack not too far up the beach. Though the shack looked somewhat weather-beaten, colorful beach toys and inner tubes lined the outer walls. Inside, the place looked like a more traditional restaurant. It had a section with tall tables and chairs, and a section off the ground with tatami and lower tables. Mae ordered a big plate of sara udon for herself, after the shack’s owner insisted it was a local Slateport specialty, and the dish even came with a side of free food for her Pokémon. As soon as she was done, several trainers at the restaurant challenged her to a battle. Mae was only too happy to comply.

By the time Mae reached the city proper, it was already mid-afternoon. True to its name, Slateport was a huge industrial port–with a towering lighthouse to guide in ships–but it also seemed to have a homey feel to it. Mae immediately noticed its wide cobblestone streets and grass-lined sidewalks. Most of the houses faced the beach or the sea; as Slateport city was on a peninsula, the ocean could be seen from most parts of town.

Right near the entrance of town was an open-air market, and Mae found herself wandering in. Stalls were lined up in neat rows, and vendors shouted cheerfully to call attention to their wares. It wasn’t just fresh produce items, either–there were stalls selling all kinds of things, from “Secret Base” decorations to TMs to different incenses, and even some selling energy drinks for Pokémon.

“Fresh-picked seaweed here!” announced one vendor, standing behind a row of barrels boasting various seafood products, “Slateport seaweed is the freshest there is! Fresh and full of life! Why, it looks like it could rear up and attack!”

“I’ll pass,” Mae waved her hand nervously, “I’d rather not get attacked by my food…”

“Hm, maybe I should pick a different comparison…” said the vendor to himself.

Mae continued on, passing stall after stall, before wandering into a section that seemed to be dedicated to these “Secret Bases”. One vendor had a stack of colorful bricks and mats that made noise when you stepped on them. Next to it, much to Mae’s delight, was a cart stacked high with Pokémon dolls.

“Now _that’s_ much more my speed,” said Mae. Beni sighed.

“Mae, you just got a new doll yesterday,” he said.

“What are you, my mom?” said Mae, “I earned this money, I can spend it how I want!”

Mae walked right over to the doll kiosk, eyes poring over each and every doll. There were several kinds, each in various sizes. Mae knew she probably wouldn’t be able to fit another Kyogre-sized doll into her bag, so she tried to stay away from the bigger ones.

“Hmm…” she picked up one of the dolls and checked its price tag, “Yikes, they’re a little expensive…”

When Mae looked back up, she found herself looking straight at a small, cute doll that looked like Beni. Mae jumped a little bit and stepped back-–one of the vendors had been holding the doll out to her. He was a young man, perhaps only a little older than Mae, with a gentle sort of expression and a Togepi-patterned bandana tied around his head. He smiled cheerfully, his straight blue hair falling in his face a little.

“Oh, uh…” Mae looked down at Beni, then back up at the vendor, “You’re recommending this one?”

The vendor nodded to her.

Suddenly an image appeared before Mae’s eyes; it was a vision of herself, holding the doll and smiling. The image vanished as quickly as it came, and Mae shook her head vigorously to get her thoughts in order.

“What was that…?”

“Oh, did he project on you?” the other vendor approached them; she was a much older lady, “You’ll have to excuse him. Ross is mute, but he has some ability to communicate via telepathy. He can project images into others’ heads–-though he _knows_ he’s not allowed to do it to customers.”

This last comment was directed more at the young man, whose name must have been Ross. Ross pouted a little and put the Torchic doll back on the stack.

“It’s okay,” said Mae, “It was just a picture of me, I think…”

“Looking happy while holding one of these dolls, I bet,” said the old woman, nodding, “Ross is always trying to help sell more dolls. He does that whenever he thinks he can get away with it.”

Ross looked away in embarrassment.

“If you’d like, I’ll give you a discount for your trouble,” said the old lady, “You seem like someone who enjoys dolls.”

“Well, I can’t say no to a discount!”

“ _Mae_ ,” Beni sighed. Ross seemed to perk up at the mention of her name; he looked at her, but said nothing.

Mae considered the dolls carefully for a few more minutes, then finally went with the Torchic doll that Ross had tried to give her.

“I think I’ll go with this one after all, m’am.”

Ross practically beamed.

“Alright,” said the old woman, “With the discount, that’ll be 1,200 Pokédollars.”

“That’s more like it.”

Mae took out her wallet and paid for the doll. Ross wrapped the doll in a colorful gift bag before handing it to her.

“Well, at least it’s a Torchic doll…” Beni commented.

“Hush, you,” said Mae, “Thanks so much!”

“No, thank you!” the old woman replied, “Take care, and please come again!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mr. Briney’s mention of a granddaughter is a nod to my friend’s nuzlocke ["1000 Paper Cranes"](https://neonlanterns.deviantart.com/gallery/50959633/1000-paper-cranes), the protagonist of which is Mr. Briney’s granddaughter. There may be several more such nods; I love her nuzlocke to pieces
> 
> Also, what is the deal with Ross?? STAY TUNED ([Here's an illustration I did of him](https://quilofire.deviantart.com/art/Ross-488974637), eheheh)
> 
> ~~this is one of the few scenes that has remained relatively unchanged from the original idea~~


	17. The Battle Tent

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After spending the night at the Pokemon Center, Mae decides to try to find this 'Battle Tent' thing Scott was talking about...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In a few previous fics I made use of musical cues (linking certain soundtracks during battle scenes, or to set the mood, etc). I do it a little in this fic too, but definitely way less than before haha...

Mae spent the rest of the afternoon familiarizing herself with the layout of the city. It wasn’t quite as big as Rustboro had been, but for some reason, Mae liked the atmosphere here a lot more. Rustboro seemed to be a working city, but Slateport had a playful, almost carefree air to it.

Mae stopped by the Pokémon Center to heal her team and pick up some brochures about the city’s main attractions. She’d seen a few points of interest walking around already, but wanted to make sure she hadn’t missed anything. The open-air market seemed to be one of Slateport’s main tourist draws, along with its pristine beaches. Somewhere in the city there was an Oceanic Museum, and apparently Hoenn’s Pokémon Fan Club was headquartered here. There was also a small blurb about Slateport’s state-of-the-art Pokémon shelter, which took in Pokémon that had been abandoned by their trainers.

“Huh, that’s weird,” said Mae, scanning another leaflet, “For a city this big, Slateport doesn’t seem to have a gym…”

“Weird,” Beni echoed.

Of course, that wasn’t to say Slateport had nothing of interest for trainers. There was an entire brochure dedicated to its newly-renovated Contest Hall, where trainers from all over gathered to compete for ribbons. Mae had never liked the sound of Pokémon Contests, even though Johto didn’t have them. They were too flashy for her liking, with too much emphasis on appearance. She preferred a good all-out battle where Pokémon could show what they’re really made of.

And then, next to the brochure for the Contest Hall… a newly printed leaflet advertising the Battle Tent. “A new way to enjoy battling… come to the Battle Tent!” was all it said.

“Well, that’s one way to get people hyped,” said Mae, “I hate to admit it, but it’s working…”

“What should we do now, Mae?” asked Beni.

“Hm…” Mae checked the time on her Pokénav, “It’s getting pretty close to dinnertime by now. I bet the Battle Tent will be closing soon.”

“We’ll just have to go by there tomorrow!” said Beni.

“Yeah,” Mae smiled, “We’ll get some rest tonight and be fighting-fit for tomorrow!”

“Yep!! And eat a lot so we’ll have lots of energy!!” Beni added.

“I’m not quite hungry yet,” said Mae, “Let’s call mom real fast before dinner…”

* * *

The following day Mae woke up bright and early–-well, bright and early for a girl her age. The sun was out again today, and the air was so clear that Mae could see all the way to the huge volcano looming in the distance. It made her a little nostalgic for home, but only a little. Mt. Silver could only be seen from the tops of tall buildings, and only on very clear days.

The Battle Tent flier had no information about where the tent actually was, which seemed to Mae like a serious oversight. She had to ask a couple of people for directions, showing them picture on the flyer. All of them directed her toward the Contest Hall in the northwest part of town; apparently the tent had been built right next to it. It didn’t take long to get there, and she spotted the Contest Hall from several streets away–a glitzy, flashy building with loud music blaring from speakers.

There had been a time when contests were a more posh, serious affair; a pastime popular mainly among older women. In recent years, the International Contest Association had been trying to expand their appeal by remodeling the old-fashioned halls and using loud pop music to draw in young people. Young contest stars had become something akin to teen idols, even pursuing careers in music and acting after rising to fame in the Master Rank. Mae thought it was all very silly, but she knew that kind of lifestyle appealed to some people, so she tried not to be _too_ judgmental as she passed by the hall.

A crowd had formed outside the contest hall, with several men holding cameras scattered among more regular-looking passerby. Mae couldn’t see what was happening, but she overheard a young-sounding girl addressing the crowd.

“‘[Appeal☆Love](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zqeJCGIgvn4)’–-my debut single-–is going on sale this week! Everyone! Please keep supporting Ali and me as we aim for the top!”

“Lissi~!!” the crowd all cheered.

“I love you, Lissi!!!!” one man bellowed.

“And as a special treat for my Slateport fans, I’m going to sing it live for you, right here!”

The crowd went wild. The girl began to sing in a cutesy voice, and Mae hurried to get to a place where she couldn’t hear it.

_Some people shouldn’t be allowed a captive audience and a microphone…_

The Battle Tent was not too far from the Contest Hall (though far enough away to be out of earshot, luckily). It wasn’t directly next to it, but more down the block a little, nestled into a corner near the edge of the water. Its striking red and white canopy was almost as eye-catching as the Contest Hall, and it looked so new that Mae got the sense it hadn’t even been rained on yet.

“I wonder what kind of place this is…?” Mae thought aloud a little. Scott hadn’t told her what kind of battling would take place here; only hinted that it would be more interesting than a Gym.

“Let’s go in!” said Beni, “I can’t wait!!”

A young man sat on a stool next to the entrance. He looked up lazily as she approached.

“The Battle Tent is invitation-only right now,” he said, almost mechanically.

“I have one,” said Mae. She got the early-entry ticket out of her fanny pack and handed it to him. He looked it over, checking the details.

“Hm. Yep, looks official. Welcome to the Battle Tent! Step on in.”

The tent’s glass doors slid open as if on cue. Mae and Beni looked at each other before heading inside.

Mae had expected a literal tent pitched over the ground, but the Battle Tent was a building in its own right. She was greeted by a brightly-lit, new-looking lobby, decorated sparsely with potted plants. A red counter formed the back of the lobby, lined with monitors displaying the top trainers who had battled at the tent. Behind the counter was a door–-Mae reasoned that it led to a room where the battling actually took place. There was a public PC, and even a small snack bar.

“Mae! You made it!”

Mae turned her attention to one of the modern-looking couches near the snack bar, where Scott sat as though he had been waiting for her. He got to his feet, waving to her excitedly.

“I wasn’t expecting to see you here so soon!” he said, “Well, what do you think? Is this place cool or what?”

“It’s pretty cool…” Mae wasn’t entirely sure what to make of it. It wasn’t at all what she had been expecting–-though, in her defense, she’d expected something much lower-budget.

“Right?” Scott grinned.

“What exactly goes on in here?” asked Mae.

“Huh? Oh! Now that you’re here, I should explain,” said Scott, “Battle Tents are bringing something new to the battling scene–or, rather, they’re a celebration of battling itself! Their main purpose is to introduce trainers to new ways to have fun battling, but I want them to appeal to both veterans and newbies.”

“Alright,” Mae was already interested.

“At its core, a Battle Tent is similar to a Gym or a Contest Hall,” said Scott, “Defeat trainers, challenge the Tent Leader, and win a Symbol for your trouble.”

“A Symbol?”

“A little silver stamp for your trainer card!” Scott took an embossing tool from his pocket to show her, “Isn’t it cute? There are going to be five tents in Hoenn-–that’s five Symbols from five cities. Win all the symbols, and… well, that’s still a surprise!”

Mae mulled this over for a bit.

“So, tents are like Gyms, but not…?”

“Not quite!” said Scott, “For the most part, you can only bring three Pokémon in for a challenge. Additionally, each tent has its own set of special rules. I don’t want to spoil them all for you, but I will tell you that the Slateport tent changes its rules depending on the day of the week. Will it be a single battle? Double? Triple? Something new entirely? You’ll have to find out!”

Mae was starting to like the sound of the Battle Tents. If each one had its own house rules, she wouldn’t know what to expect going in–maybe there would be styles of battling that Mae had never heard of before!

“Now you may be thinking: what if I want symbols, but I also want badges or ribbons?” said Scott, “Fear not! Battle Tents are made to complement contests and Gyms, rather than compete with them! Of course, if you only compete in Battle Tents, that’s just fine too. Pokémon training has something for everyone: that’s what I’d like to emphasize here. Mae, I hope you’ll get a chance to enjoy Gyms, Contests, and Battle Tents–the whole works!”

“Thanks!” said Mae, “I’ll do my best!”

“That’s the spirit!” said Scott, “I gotta get going to check on how the other tents are coming, but know that I’m rooting for you! Good luck!”

With that, Scott waved to her and strode back through the glass doors. Mae and Beni looked at each other.

“Well, he sure is enthusiastic,” Mae commented.

“What a weirdo,” said Beni, “I don’t like that guy, Mae.”

“At least he’s not being rude anymore, right?”

“Whatever,” said Beni, “C’mon, Mae! Let’s start a challenge already!!”

“Alright, alright,” said Mae. She approached the counter, and Beni scrambled to follow her. A uniformed woman waiting behind the counter smiled cheerfully at her.

“Welcome to the Slateport Battle Tent!” said the woman, “Today’s house rules are Inverse Battles. Would you like to make a challenge?”

“Inverse Battles? What are those?”

“Oh, you don’t know? I’ll explain,” said the woman, “Inverse Battles are essentially the same as normal battles, but type matchups are reversed. For instance, a fire Pokémon would be weak to grass and strong against water.”

“What?!” said Mae, “I’ve never heard of that before!”

“They were only recently invented,” said the woman, “Inverse Battling is the most difficult battle style we use here, and at this time you will only fight the Tent Leader with these rules. However, if you feel today’s House Rules are too challenging, you can always come back tomorrow.”

Mae paused. She wanted to see what Battle Tents were all about, and Inverse Battles sounded just crazy enough to be enjoyable, but would this be getting in over her head…?

“What’re you waiting for, Mae?!” said Beni, “Hey lady, of course we’re in!”

“Huh? Beni–!”

“She said we only have to fight the Tent Leader in an Inverse Battle, right?” said Beni, “That means we only have to do it once! We can handle it!”

“Well…” Mae made up her mind, “It’s worth a shot!”

“Great! Now, please pick three Pokémon to use for the challenge. You will only get to use those three, but they will be healed after every battle. We’ll hold your other Pokémon here for safekeeping.”

Mae took a minute to consider her Pokémon, holding the Pokéballs in her hands as she did. She didn’t have very broad type coverage at the moment–she hadn’t had the chance to catch any Pokémon since her trip through Petalburg woods.

“Well, I guess I’ll go with Zigzagoon, Shroomish, and Beni,” said Mae. She handed the other three Pokéballs to the attendant, who placed them on a padded tray and stowed them behind the counter. The woman then opened up a door in the counter, and Mae and Beni stepped through.

“The arena is right through this door,” the woman continued, indicating to the doorway ahead, “Your challenge will begin as soon as you’re ready, and you will be fighting two trainers before the Tent Leader. Good luck!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thaaaat’s about the only time Lisia is gonna show up, whoopsie daisy. She might get mentioned again way later (like, sootopolis later) but for now… lmao
> 
> also I like Lisia and Appeal Love but i get the feeling Mae would like neither


	18. Battle! Vs. Tent Leader

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mae takes on the Battle Tent, where she'll be facing her strongest opponent yet...

Mae gripped Zigzagoon and Shroomish’s Pokéballs tightly as she stepped through the doorway. Beyond was a room similar to the entrance hall, with a brightly tiled floor. Red tiles marked the boundaries of the arena, and a man Mae took to be the referee sat in a folding chair not too far away. He pointed to the left side of the room, and Mae walked over there. A spot had been marked on the floor for trainers to stand.

“Are you ready?” asked the referee as Mae took her place.

“Yeah. Bring it on!” said Mae.

“Alright. Here comes opponent number one.”

A door opened to Mae’s left. To her surprise, a young boy–-probably not older than ten or eleven-–stepped out. He took his place on the other side of the field, toting a stuffed Pokémon.

“Um,” said Mae, “Is this really…?”

“You got it! I’m da first tent trainer!” said the boy loudly, “Daddy said he’ll buy me a new game if I win!”

“Well, alright,” said Mae, “Don’t expect me to go easy just because you’re a kid!”

“Bring it on! We can take ya!” said the boy. He threw a Pokéball, and a Zigzagoon just like hers popped from its Pokéball, “Ziggy, I choose you!”

“Shroomish, this one’s yours!”

Mae sent her Shroomish onto the field, and the fight begun. It was immediately obvious that the boy was a complete beginner; he gave Zigzagoon commands that were almost foolhardy, and didn’t seem to give Mae’s actions a second thought. Shroomish defeated his Pokémon in no time at all, and Mae felt a little bad that the battle was over so quickly.

To Mae’s horror, the child handled the loss poorly. He burst into tears, wailing at a volume Mae was certain could be heard outside the tent, and ran out of the room.

“Agh, not again…” said the referee.

“Yikes,” said Mae, “I made a kid cry…”

“Nah, don’t worry about it,” the referee dug some wax out of his ears as he spoke, “That kid always cries when he loses. I never have the heart to tell him he needs to train more.”

“Oh.”

“Your next opponent’s a little older,” said the referee, “Need me to heal your Pokémon before the next round?”

“I don’t think so,” said Mae. Shroomish had barely a scratch from its last fight.

“Alrighty then. Come on in, opponent #2!”

Another child walked into the arena–a girl only a little younger than Mae. She stood defiantly on the opposing side of the field and crossed her arms.

“You made my little brother cry!” she said defensively, “You’re gonna pay for that!”

“We’ll see about that,” said Mae, “It depends on how good your Pokémon are!”

“Oh yeah? Marill, go!”

The girl tossed a Pokéball, and a round, blue Pokémon popped from it. Mae had seen this Pokémon at home in Johto, so she knew already that it was a water type. She let Shroomish out again, and the battle began. Marill put up more of a fight than Zigzagoon did, and its trainer was at least competent enough to tell it to dodge. However, the clear type advantage did it in before three turns were up. Next the girl sent out a Taillow, and Mae recalled Shroomish.

“Alright, Zigzagoon, this one’s yours!”

Mae let her own Zigzagoon out, and the Pokémon shook itself before facing Taillow bravely. Mae hadn’t been training Zigzagoon as much as her other Pokémon, but she hoped it would be a useful partner in the future. It and Taillow were about evenly matched, but Zigzagoon managed to score a win before too long. Taillow’s trainer recalled it in a huff.

“I don’t believe this!” said the girl, “You’re gonna get it now! Daddyyyyy!!!”

Like her brother before her, the girl ran from the room-–though perhaps with fewer tears.

“Alright, good job,” said the referee, “You’ll be facing the Tent Leader in just a few moments. We have to get some things ready for the Inverse Battle… Here, let me heal your Pokémon.”

The referee took a small device from his pocket similar to the one Brendan had, and Mae loaded her three Pokéballs into it. While Mae’s Pokémon were healing, the side door opened and a man in a loose-fitting purple outfit walked in, pushing a cart loaded with an odd machine.

“Are you the Tent Leader?” asked Mae.

“Hm? Ah, _non, non_ ,” he spoke with a noticeable Kalos accent, “I am Inver, the inventor of Inverse Battles.”

_Inver can’t possibly be this guy’s real name,_ Mae found herself thinking.

“This machine is what I use to invert type matchups during a battle,” Inver continued, “I was invited here to Hoenn in the hopes of making Inverse Battles more popular.”

“Oh, okay,” said Mae, “So where’s the Tent Leader, then…?”

Another man strode through the open door; this one far older and dressed in traditional clothing. He had a sharp-looking face with angular features, and he kept his shoulder-length white hair back with a headband. A single streak of black hair was visible on one side. At first his expression was severe, but he turned to Mae and smiled warmly.

“Sorry about earlier,” he said, rubbing the back of his head.

“Sorry? About what?”

“We don’t have any full-time tent trainers lined up yet, so my kids have been playing the opponents for a couple of weeks now,” the man explained.

“Oh!” said Mae, “I understand.”

“I’m Trent, and I’m the Tent Leader here,” said the man, “I have to commend you for making it this far. I know my kids aren’t that tough yet, but Scott wouldn’t issue an early-entry ticket to just anyone.”

“Oh, uh, thanks…!” said Mae.

“And now, when you’re ready, we’ll get the final match rolling,” said Trent, “Today’s house rules are Inverse Battles. I hope you’re ready to give it all you’ve got!”

“Bring it!!” shouted Beni, hopping up and down excitedly, “Mae, let me go first!”

“Hang on, Beni, let’s see what kinds of Pokémon this guy has…”

“Inver, if you would,” said Trent. Inver nodded and pressed a few buttons on the machine. It whirred to life and began to hum softly, but as far as Mae could tell, nothing was happening.

“Is it going…?”

“It’s working, don’t worry,” said Trent, “[Let’s focus on the battle ahead!](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=itXFPpAISMo) Graveler, let’s go!”

Trent threw a Pokéball, and a boulder-like Pokémon popped from it. The Pokémon brought its four arms together and cracked its stony knuckles.

“Graveler, huh?” said Mae. That was another Pokémon she’d seen back home; it was a rock and ground type, “So if type matchups are reversed… Beni, you try this one!”

Beni nodded vigorously and leaped onto the field. Graveler practically towered over him–it was by far the largest Pokémon Mae had ever fought before.

_It feels so weird sending a fire-type against a Pokémon like Graveler,_ Mae thought to herself, _But if that machine really is scrambling up the types…_

“Beni, try using Ember!”

“Graveler, rock smash!”

Beni moved first, spraying a stream of small embers at Graveler. To May’s surprise, Graveler cried out in pain and rolled around to shake off its burns.

“I didn’t think it’d actually work–!” said Mae.

“Toss your expectations out the window!” said Trent, “That’s what Inverse Battling is all about! Now, Graveler!”

Graveler rolled forward and punched Beni with enough force to shatter a boulder. Although the attack’s type was only average against Beni, the small bird Pokémon was sent flying.

“Beni!” said Mae. She ran to catch her Pokémon, “If you want, you can sit this one out…”

“No!” said Beni, “I’m gonna fight!”

Beni leaped from her arms and took his place back on the field.

“Graveler, strength!”

“Beni, ember again!”

Beni moved faster, and he fired off another stream of smoldering flames. Graveler took the full force of the attack and was knocked backwards. It struggled for a bit to get to its feet, but eventually gave up and passed out.

“This is so weird…!” said Mae, “But… it’s kinda fun!”

“Isn’t it?” said Trent, “Let’s go, Mightyena!”

“Mightyena, huh…?” Mae had seen one or two in battles, so she had some idea of what type it was, “Beni, you can sit this one out! We’ll let Zigzagoon handle this!”

“You got it!” Beni hopped over to Mae’s side, and she let Zigzagoon out of its Pokéball. Trent responded by sending Mightyena into battle. The dog Pokémon was much bigger than Zigzagoon, and for a second Mae reconsidered–but she’d seen her Pokémon take on bigger foes before, so she decided to hold her ground.

This round of the battle took much longer. Zigzagoon and Mightyena were neither at an advantage nor a disadvantage to each other. It came down to which Pokémon was more powerful–-and Mightyena came out the victor.

“Having second thoughts, Mae?” asked Trent.

“No way!” Mae took Shroomish’s Pokéball from her belt, “Your turn, Shroomish!”

Shroomish was also much smaller than Mightyena, but it had the advantage of having full health. Its attacks didn’t do much to the dog Pokémon, but it didn’t take many hits to finish what Zigzagoon had started. Mightyena crumpled to the ground, and Trent recalled it.

“I’m impressed you’ve made it this far,” said Trent, “But this is as far as you go! Breloom, it’s you!”

Trent let out his final Pokémon: a dinosaur-like animal with a mushroom-shaped head. Mae got out her Pokédex to identify it.

“ _Breloom. Mushroom Pokémon. Type: Grass/Fighting. The evolved form of Shroomish, this Pokémon closes in on its foe with light and sprightly footwork, then throws punches with its stretchy arms. This Pokémon’s fighting technique puts boxers to shame.”_

“Shroomish, do you think you can take it?” asked Mae, “It’s a grass-type, so grass-type moves will be effective.”

“Shroom!” Shroomish shook itself and stared down its foe.

“Alright, Shroomish, use absorb!”

“Breloom, mega drain!”

Breloom was much faster than the stumpy Shroomish. It hit faster than Mae could blink, draining the rest of Shroomish’s health in a single hit. Shroomish fell backwards and rolled behind Mae.

“What…?!” was all she could say.

“Breloom is known for its speed,” said Trent, “And since your last Pokémon is a fire type, I’d say this battle is as good as won.”

“C’mon back, Shroomish,” Mae recalled her Pokémon nervously. Normally, a fire type against a grass type would’ve been an easy advantage–but with the rules reversed, and Beni already hurting from its fight with Graveler, Mae didn’t have the highest hopes. She clenched her fists.

_I have to believe in Beni. If I don’t, this battle’s already over._

“Beni, you’re up!”

Beni nodded and scrambled to take his place on the field. Breloom towered over the tiny bird Pokémon, but he just fluffed himself up to make himself look bigger.

“Alright Beni, let’s try using scratch!”

“Breloom, mega drain!”

Breloom moved much more quickly than Beni could–-before either of them could register what was happening, Beni was already on the ground. Breloom had Mae’s Pokémon pinned down with one hand, raising the other for its final strike. Dreading what would happen next, Mae threw her hands up over her eyes and cried out:

“ _Beni_ –!!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As per usual when I add OC's to fanwork, I end up drawing them, haha... [Here's my illustration of Trent](http://magu-art.tumblr.com/post/126160215462/back-in-2007-when-i-first-started-working-on-what). He's intended to be a slight modification of the Expert trainer class.


	19. Turnabout Victory!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mae and Beni are in a pinch...!

Mae waited for the sound of Breloom’s attack hitting home, but the sound never came. After a few seconds Mae lowered her hands, wondering if something had gone wrong–and her eyes grew wide.

Beni was glowing bright white. Breloom backed off in surprise, letting Beni get to his feet. He began to grow and transform, sprouting a pair of long arms and powerful-looking thighs. Finally the light faded, revealing a much different Pokémon than had been standing there before. Now Beni could look Breloom in the eye, and he lowered his head defiantly.

“No way…!” said Mae.

“A Pokémon evolving mid-battle…!” said Trent.

“You bet!” Beni hopped from one clawed foot to the other, “Come on, Breloom! I’ll take you on right here!”

Mae whipped out her Pokédex again.

“ _Combusken. Young Fowl Pokémon. Type: Fire/Fighting. The evolved form of Torchic, Combusken toughens up its legs and thighs by running through fields and mountains. This Pokémon’s legs possess both speed and power, enabling it to dole out 10 kicks in one second.”_

“Kicks, huh?” Mae pulled up Beni’s information on the screen, “Never would’ve guessed a Pokémon like Torchic would grow to be a kicker.”

“Now things are about to get interesting,” Trent grinned, “Breloom, mach punch!”

“[Beni, double kick](http://poke-music.tumblr.com/post/97227120135)!”

Breloom moved first, its attack demanding a burst of speed. However, this time Beni was able to deftly move out of the way. He spun on his heels and launched a kicking attack straight at the mushroom Pokémon, hitting it twice in a row. Since Breloom was also a fighting type, the attack was super effective. Breloom leaped back towards Trent, taking a moment to re-evaluate its opponent.

“We still have the advantage, so don’t hold back! Breloom, mega drain!”

“Beni, get it with double kick again!”

Breloom moved first again, coming at Beni from the left–-but the fowl Pokémon blocked the attack with one of its armlike wings, and sent Breloom flying backwards with another series of kicks. Breloom recovered quickly, and ran at Beni with another high-speed punch–-but Beni countered with a couple of rapid-fire kicks. The two Pokémon were evenly matched, and both of them would probably only survive one more direct blow. It came down to which one would be lucky enough to land a hit.

“Beni, you can do it!” shouted Mae.

“Breloom, take the win!”

Breloom’s arm stretched out as it swung another punch, and Beni ducked beneath it. The grass-type Pokémon stumbled, and Beni delivered a solid kick straight to its stomach. Breloom flew backwards and knocked into the tent wall, slumping down onto the ground.

For a few seconds there was a tense silence. Mae’s heart pounded in her chest, and her palms hurt from how tightly she’d been clenching her fists. Finally Trent nodded,  and turned to recall his Pokémon.

“We…!” Mae could hardly believe it, “We did it!!”

She ran onto the field and flung her arms around her Pokémon’s neck excitedly. Beni stumbled a little bit, but managed not to fall over. He laughed bashfully.

“We did it…!!” he echoed.

“Evolving in the middle of the battle was so cool!” Mae released her Pokémon and took him by the shoulders, “My heart was beating so fast, I thought I was gonna faint!”

“Yeah, well,” said Beni, “I don’t know if I’ll be able to pull off a trick like that again…”

“Oh!!” Mae took her hands off his shoulders, “Your necklace! When you evolved, did it…?”

“Nope!” Beni moved some feathers aside to show that the beaded necklace was still around his neck, “Looks like I’m gonna need a different chain, though. This one’s too tight now.”

“Here, let me take that,” Mae carefully took the necklace off, and Beni shook himself a little. Mae noticed that Beni’s necklace would have fit comfortably around her wrist–had it originally been a bracelet for a human? She tucked it into her fanny pack carefully as Trent approached them.

“I have to say, that was a really good match,” said Trent, “We’ve had a few challengers in here, but so far the battles have been one-sided one way or another. That was the closest fight I’ve had in a long time, Mae. You should be proud of your Pokémon!”

“T-thank you, Mr. Trent!”

“Evolving in the middle of a battle is a somewhat unorthodox strategy, but your Pokémon was lucky to be able to pull it off,” Trent went on, “I think a trainer and Pokémon combination like you more than deserves this Symbol. Mae, please show me your trainer card.”

Mae got out her card and handed it to him as he produced an embossing tool from his kimono sleeves. Trent punched her card with the tool and handed it back. A round silver stamp had been embossed in one corner, below the champion’s signature. The design in the center looked like a wide exclamation mark.

“That’s the Skill Symbol,” said Trent, “This might go without saying, but it represents your skill as a trainer. I hope you’ll consider putting those skills to good use from here on, and ascend to even greater heights!”

“Thank you…” Mae felt too overwhelmed to come up with anything else to say.

“Incidentally…” said Trent, “Would you be interested in becoming a tent trainer, Mae? We have a bunch of spots available right now, since we just opened. It’d be good to get someone other than my kids on the team.”

Mae smiled and waved her hand apologetically.

“Sorry, but I think I’m gonna have to decline,” she said, “I just started my journey, and there’s still so much more I want to see and do. But I’ll keep it in mind!”

“No problem,” said Trent, “Anytime you’d like to come back, our tent is open for you. Come on, I’ll escort you up to the front.”

With a nod to Inver, Trent made his way to the door. Mae and Beni followed quickly. The lobby was just as empty as they’d left it, and the lady behind the counter greeted them cheerfully as they passed.

“Well, Mae, I have one more question for you,” said Trent, “What did you think of the Iverse Battle rules?

“Hm,” said Mae, “It was rough, but also exhilarating. It kind of put on an extra layer of strategy, and made me think outside the box a little.”

Trent nodded.

“Inverse battles are a good way to challenge what you know about Pokémon,” he said, “I hope that the Battle Tents will help spread their popularity.”

“Me too,” said Mae, “I wanna keep having interesting battles like that on my journey. So… I think I’m going to pursue the Battle Tent Challenge!”

Trent practically beamed.

“Mae, it makes me so happy to hear that. I bet Scott would be over the moon to hear that too. Make sure you give him a call when you get the chance.”

“I will.”

“But first, you ought to get yourselves to a Pokémon Center. Your Pokémon deserve a good rest!”

“They sure do!” Mae laughed, “Be seeing you, Trent!”

“Of course. Thank you for stopping by, and enjoy the rest of your Tent Challenge!”

With that Mae and Beni left the Tent and headed back to the Pokémon Center. Mae felt strangely exhausted, as though she’d been fighting the battle herself. She knew Beni must have been twice as tired as she was. The two of them said barely anything to each other the whole way back, both letting the glow of the victory linger a little bit.

* * *

Returning to the Pokémon Center, Mae found she’d just about missed the lunch crowd. The Pokémon Center was empty save for a few stragglers, and it didn’t take her long to heal her team. After grabbing a quick bite to eat, she went up to the room she'd rented and flopped onto the bed, letting out a sigh.

_My first Symbol…_

She was excited, but at the same time, part of her still felt that she was letting her dream to take on the Champion fall by the wayside. She shook those thoughts from her mind.

_Nah. It would take me years to win all the badges. Years of slogging and training and fighting the same battle over and over… Even if it takes me longer to get to the league, I want to give these Battle Tents a try._

Mae let her Pokémon out of their Pokéballs. Beni, Zigzagoon, Poochyena, Wurmple, Nincada, Shroomish… they’d all had their share of battles so far. At the same time, she felt she couldn’t continue using all of them. Wurmple and Nincada had been particularly unhelpful in fights, so she’d been using them less and less. She felt a little bad about it, but she planned to switch them out for different Pokémon once she caught a few more.

Her Pokémon all stretched out and lounged around the room. Mae picked up the remote on the nightstand and switched on the TV. After all she’d already done that day, she decided she’d rightly earned a relaxing afternoon.

“ _…just won her first Cool Contest in Slateport City! She and her Lombre really dominated the competition! Now, I‘d like to ask a few things. First, what were your impressions of the contest you just won?”_

_“Coo’,”_ the trainer onscreen replied nonchalantly in a husky voice.

“Hey, she’s wearing the same bandana I have,” Mae commented.

“ _Fair enough! A succinct summary! Now, what does the concept of ‘cool’ mean to you?”_

The trainer onscreen said nothing, only clicked her tongue and pointed her fingers like guns.

“ _Now that’s the definition of cool! I bet this cool trainer is really going to make a scene in the Contest world!”_

“Yep, she’s pretty cool,” Mae agreed out loud, “If Contests have a cool side, maybe I ought to give one a try…”

“I dunno, Mae,” said Beni, “They seem kinda lame to me.”

“Haha, yeah…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> interestingly, this battle has changed little from the original idea; the addition of Inverse Battling actually made the scenario I originally had more plausible lmao
> 
> I also drew out the [Tent Symbols](http://magu-art.tumblr.com/post/126161359622/the-tent-symbols-that-maes-pursuing-in-de-i), to give an idea of what those look like.
> 
> And finally, a real cameo by Frey! Go read [1000 Paper Cranes](http://neonlanterns.deviantart.com/gallery/50959633/1000-paper-cranes), yo


	20. Marine Science Museum

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mae's stay in Slateport City continues, her new Combusken at her side.

Mae spent a couple more days in Slateport City, exploring and battling as much as she could. She even spent some time training with Trent and his kids, who appreciated her help honing their skills. Before long, though, Mae began to get the urge to move on to the next town. After a long day battling on the beach, she told Beni they’d be departing for Mauville the following morning.

However, Mae awoke the next day to the sound of rain pattering the Pokémon Center roof. She opened the curtains, watching in disbelief as the rain fell in sheets outside. After throwing her clothes on and regretting not buying a rain poncho earlier, Mae headed downstairs with Beni in tow.

The Pokémon Center lobby was crammed with trainers who all seemed to be on the same page as Mae. No one wanted to be going anywhere in weather like this. Young trainers played with their Pokémon, while older kids and discussed strategies with each other, Pokédexes in hand. The TV hanging over the lounge area was tuned to a weather report, where a reporter in a bright yellow coat braved the downpour to give the latest update.

_“As you can see, the rainy season has arrived in southern Hoenn, with heavy rains today and high humidity forecasted for the rest of the week…”_

“Rainy season?” Beni fluffed his feathers irritably, “Ugh, this sucks.”

“ _The unusually heavy rainfall of recent years has prompted forecasters to issue safety warnings for anyone planning to be at sea during the coming month. Forecasters also advise against traveling on coastal routes until the rain stops later this evening.”_

“What should we do, Mae?” Beni asked, “I don’t wanna stay in the Pokémon Center all day, that’d be boring!”

“Well…” Mae got out her Pokénav Plus and loaded up the map function. She’d planned to head north to Mauville on Route 10, but one look at the route’s layout gave her second thoughts. It ran right along the water, on a snaking spit of land–it would be a very dangerous walk in this weather.

“Guess we’re not going to Mauville today…” She dug around in her fanny pack for some brochures she’d picked up a few days ago, “I don’t think we’ve been to the Oceanic Museum yet. Maybe we should wait for the rain to let up a little and head over there? We’ll be inside at the museum, at least.”

“Yeah, okay,” said Beni, “That still sounds boring, but I guess it’s better than nothing.

* * *

It took about a half hour for the rain to let up enough for Mae to leave the Pokémon Center. She recalled Beni before setting out (just in case the weather took a turn for the worse) and tried to walk quickly. Luckily, the Oceanic Museum was a short way from the Pokémon Center. Unluckily, there appeared to be a long line to get in. Mae slowed her pace as she approached.

She noticed immediately that something was off about the group waiting in line. All the people waiting wore the same outfit: rain-soaked blue and white striped shirts and black bandanas. It was the same outfit worn by the grunt they’d fought at Rusturf Tunnel.

_What’s Team Aqua doing here?_

Laura had mentioned something about Team Aqua doing research on marine conservation. Maybe they were here for a field trip…? Something about that didn’t seem right.

Mae made her way to the museum entrance to see if there was any way around the line, but it was no use. The front door was the only way in, and there was only one lane. She wasn’t sure she wanted to be waiting outside; not with the weather likely to change at any moment.

“I guess we’ll have to do the museum another day,” she said, though she realized that Beni was in his Pokéball after the fact.

One of the men in line took notice of her and waved. She approached him cautiously.

“Hey, you wantin’ to get into the museum?” he asked.

“Yeah,” said Mae, “But this line is so long, I think I’ll just come back tomorrow…”

“Nah, don’t worry about it,” the man smiled, “You can cut ahead of me if you want. Team Aqua’s gonna take forever to get us all inside. No one’ll notice one more person.”

“That’s not true!” the woman in line behind him piped up, “We will _too_ notice!”

“Oh, come on!” said the man, “It’s just one girl! What happened to bein’ decent members of society? We’re in the way, it’s only polite to let her go ahead of us!”

“Decent members of society? Please! Ain’t that what the boss says tripped us up in the first place?”

The man and woman began to bicker as Mae looked on helplessly. Before she could turn back for the Pokémon Center, however, she noticed that a space had formed behind the man–the person in front of him had moved up, but he was still busy bickering with the woman next to him. He seemed to have noticed this too, and he indicated slightly with his elbow that Mae should cut in. Mae took his cue and slipped inside.

After paying a small fee at the entrance (and lamenting the sign asking trainers to keep Pokémon contained), Mae made her way into the main hall. The crowd inside must have been twice as large as the line. Team Aqua members gathered around every exhibit, blocking her view of the signs and displays and chatting loudly amongst themselves. Mae found herself wishing she’d saved the 50 Pokédollars and just gone back to the Pokémon Center, but part of her was determined not to let that money go to waste. She made her way up a flight of stairs, hoping that the second floor would be quieter.


	21. The Captain

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mae's visit to the Oceanic Museum is rudely interrupted...

Save for an older man milling around a back corner, the second floor was empty. Soft piano music floated from speakers in the ceiling, offsetting the hum of the air conditioning. Mae made her way around the room, starting first at a wall of water samples from various regions around the world. The signs near each sample explained such topics as water hardness and salinity, and how these things might differ from region to region. There was a scale model of the Hoenn region in one corner, and Mae could press buttons to illuminate drainage basins and ocean currents.

_“… The biggest pearl ever created by a Clamperl weighed an impressive twenty pounds!”_

As Mae crossed the room, she passed a small theater with comfy-looking chairs arranged around a TV screen. A man dressed in a labcoat onscreen indicated enthusiastically to a clam-like Pokémon next to him, though the Pokémon seemed less excited to be there.

Next Mae approached a row of exhibits displaying model ships, painstakingly built perfectly to scale. She smiled as she recognized the S.S. Anne and the S.S. Aqua among them. She’d ridden the S.S. Aqua once on a family vacation to Kanto. She’d been much younger then, and barely remembered anything about it, but the ship model looked familiar to her all the same. Behind the Kanto and Johto ships was a much larger, more impressive ship model. The sign for it read “Royal Unova: Luxury cruise liner currently under construction in Unova.”

By now Mae had caught up to the older man who had been there when she arrived. He was standing in front of a display of a model submarine and looking over what appeared to be blueprints.

“If Devon’s parts fit, then we could launch much sooner than I planned…” he mumbled aloud to himself.

Footsteps could be heard coming up the stairs nearby. In a flash, the room was flooded with members of Team Aqua. The older man jumped and quickly folded up the blueprints.

“Hey you!” said one of the Aqua members, approaching the man, “You Mr. Stern?”

“That’s _Captain_ Stern,” the man corrected him, “And yes, I am. Who are you people? No, wait, that emblem on your bandana… You wouldn’t happen to be Team Aqua, would you?”

“Bingo!” one of the grunts grinned, “We’re flattered you remember us! Saves us the trouble of telling you why we’re here. Now… hand over those blueprints! Or better yet, the scanner itself!”

“I–excuse me!?” Stern stepped back, “Oh, not this again. You aren’t going to steal my submarine, are you?”

“Well, we’d hate if it came to that,” a second grunt answered, “What we need this time is a scanner–a really powerful one! One that can scan whole routes at once! In other words… the one you have!”

“Do I look like I have it with me?!” said Stern, “A scanner that large doesn’t fit in my pocket!”

“No, but the plans for one do,” the first grunt held out his hand, “Come on. Hand it over, and we won’t make any trouble.”

“I–!”

At this point, Mae decided she was done eavesdropping.

“Hey Team Aqua! Leave that guy alone!”

Mae pushed several grunts out of the way as she went to stand between Captain Stern and Team Aqua. The grunts looked at her in astonishment.

“Hey!” said one of them, “That’s one of the girls who kicked my ass at Rusturf tunnel!”

“What, seriously?” another grunt chimed in.

“It’s payback time!” said the first grunt, taking a Pokéball from his belt.

“Bring it on!” said Mae, “I’ll knock you flat any day!”

“Um…” said Captain Stern, “Please don’t battle in here! You’ll disturb the exhibits…!”

“Butt out!” shouted the grunt, “Poochyena, let’s roll!”

“Alright, Beni, get ‘em!”

Mae let her Combusken out of his Pokéball, while the grunt set out his Poochyena. The two Pokémon braced themselves for a fight: Beni cracked his knuckles, and Poochyena growled fiercely. Before the trainers could call out attacks, however, a booming voice rang out over their heads.

“Belay that, men!”

All heads turned to the stairs, and the Aqua grunts hurriedly parted to create an aisle. A fearsome figure crossed the room toward them: a tall and muscular man with a dark beard, an intimidating expression, and a wetsuit fashioned to resemble a coat. On his head he wore a blue bandana emblazoned with the Aqua logo.

“What do we have here? I come to see what was taking you simps so long to steal a couple of plans, and I find you picking fights with a little girl? Typical.”

“And who the heck are _you?_ ” asked Mae.

The room fell silent. The newcomer turned to face her, the anchor and chain around his neck jingling as he went.

“Ohhhh shiiiit,” hissed one Aqua grunt, “She talked up to the boss…!!”

“Nobody talks to the boss like that!” another whispered, “She’s a goner for sure…!”

The newcomer cracked a smirk.

“Heh! That’s a fierce expression for such a wee little scamp,” he said, “You’re not like other trainer kids, are you? You’ve got guts. Not bad for someone your age.”

The man raised a huge thumb to his chest.

“The name’s Archie,” he said, “And the rough-looking lot you see here is my crew, Team Aqua. So tell me, lassie: why’d you decide to get in our way?”

“I bet she’s with Team Magma!” shouted a grunt. There was a murmur as the others agreed.

“Team Magma? No,” Archie shook his head, “If she were, she’d be dressed like one of those landlubbing losers–-and I don’t see any pocket protectors or outdated glasses on ‘er, am I right?”

Team Aqua obviously thought this was a riot, because they all burst out into uproarious laughter. Mae and Stern could only look on nervously. Just who _was_ Archie?

“Men! Lest we forget why we’ve come,” said Archie, and the room was immediately quiet again, “Let us deliver a reminder. Pokémon, people… all life depends on the sea! That’s right; the sea is an irreplaceable treasure for every living thing that calls this speck of rock its home. But humanity has become selfish, and arrogantly dirties and exploits the ocean to serve its own ends. Day by day, we destroy the source of all life… to us of Team Aqua, this is unforgivable!”

“Yeah!” the grunts cheered in agreement.

“If humans end up suffering for it, well, mayhaps we’re reaping what we sow,” Archie continued, “But what of the Pokémon that no longer have a place to live because we stole and soiled their seas? The Pokémon that won’t have a place to raise their young and watch them grow? The fish we’ve consumed to extinction, the reefs we’ve destroyed… We’re creating a world of empty seas and stranded Pokémon, and just letting it happen! Nothing makes me angrier than that! That’s why Team Aqua is weighing anchor and doing something about it, right, men?”

“Right, boss!!” the Aqua members cheered again.

“Heh,” Archie laughed to himself a little, “It’s not like me to talk so much. Never mind, little scamp. We can make due without those plans. I’ll withdraw for now and leave you be. But know this: interfere with Team Aqua again, and the rising tide will be the least of your concerns-–remember that!”

Archie turned to his men.

“We’re hauling out, lads!”

With Archie in the lead, the grunts began to talk amongst themselves as they made their way to the stairs. The one who had been about to battle Mae scoffed and recalled his Poochyena before following the others out.

“I don’t understand,” said Captain Stern as the room fell quiet again, “I thought Team Aqua had reformed. Until recently they were conducting research that would help conserve the oceans. Why would they go back to violence and threats? Why now…?”

“Got me,” Mae shrugged and recalled Beni, “I only just moved here from Johto, so I don’t know what Team Aqua’s all about…”

“Oh, I see!” said Captain Stern, “That’s fine, it makes sense that you wouldn’t know. Anyway, thank you for helping me out. If it hadn’t been for you, I would’ve had to hand over these plans…”

Stern took the blueprints from his pocket to show her. They appeared to be for a large submarine, with notes and measurements too technical for Mae to understand.

“It’s my Submarine Explorer 2,” said Stern, “An improvement from the one I completed four years ago… which, unfortunately, was stolen and crashed by Team Aqua. This one’s primary function is to map ocean basins using its large scanner.”

“That’s the scanner Team Aqua was after, then,” said Mae.

“It seems so,” Stern furrowed his brow, “The submarine’s scanner can use radar and sonar to map out the layout of an entire route at a time. It’s so powerful that every Pokémon, every blade of sea grass can be rendered in a computer model of the route–though, for the most part we tend to ignore such fine data and stick to the bigger picture.”

“Makes sense,” said Mae, “What could Team Aqua possibly want it for?”

“Who knows?” said a third voice. The two of them jumped and looked up as Stern hastily folded up the blueprints again. A tall Aqua grunt had quietly remained in the room, and he walked over to them with a confident jaunt. Mae recognized him as the one who’d let her cut him in line.

“I thought you goons all left!” said Mae.

“They did,” said the Aqua grunt, “Don’t worry, I’m not really with Team Aqua.”

The grunt reached up to his chin and pulled off an incredibly convincing mask and wig, revealing a much different-looking person beneath. He had uneven purple hair and golden eyes–traits that would have stuck out like a sore thumb among the other grunts. Below his right eye was a strange green tattoo: a streak with a toothed edge on one side.

“I’m a spy for Team Magma,” he explained, “Us ‘landlubbing losers’ have taken it upon ourselves to keep an eye on Team Aqua in case they try to do anything stupid. From the sound of things, it looks like we’re going to have our hands full.”

“I bet,” said Mae, though she still kept Beni’s Pokéball tight in her grip. She wasn’t sure she could trust this ‘Team Magma’ character.

“You two should watch yourselves–-Stern, you especially,” the Magma spy continued, “Team Aqua rarely gives up on something once they’ve decided on it. I bet they’re going to try to steal those plans again.”

“I’ll be cautious…” said Stern.

“If you need any help, Team Magma is on your side,” said the spy, “Or at least, that’s what my boss told me to say.”

The Magma member replaced the mask, slipping effortlessly back into his disguise. Mae was astonished by how well-made the costume was; she never would have guessed by looking that he was wearing a mask.

“I’d better get going. Archie might notice I’m gone.”

“Right,” said Mae.

As the Team Magma member made his way out, Mae couldn’t help but get the feeling that the tattoo under his eye was familiar to her. She’d seen it somewhere before, but where…?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again proving my absurd loyalty to old pokemon [characters of the day](https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Brodie).


	22. Mauville City

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After meeting up with Brendan again, the two trainers make their way to Mauville City.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would’ve written out Mae and Brendan’s battle but *shrugging emoji*

_It took a few days for the weather to clear up completely, but Mae was able to set out for Mauville under cloudy skies. She met up with Brendan again on Route 110, and the two of them had a battle to see who had improved the most. Mae beat Brendan fairly handily. The two of them made their way to Mauville together, discussing how their journeys had been until that point._

After winding beneath Cycling Road for almost an hour and a half, Route 110 started to move inland a little bit. A giant building came into view, dwarfing the trees around it. Huge purple balloons flew from its roof, and the whole thing had a very new look to it. The closer they got, the larger it loomed: it must have been three or four stories high and several miles across, complete with what looked like a rooftop garden. The path ran right up to a glass-roofed entryway, and Brendan came to a stop in front of it.

“Well, here we are!”

Brendan indicated to the entrance of the towering building ahead of them. Mae looked around incredulously, but only saw forest for miles on either side.

“This is…?”

“Mauville, duh!” said Brendan, “Oh! Maybe you didn’t know because you just moved here and all, but a few years ago Mauville’s mayor decided to overhaul the city and make it totally new. Actually, they only finished construction recently–I’ve never been inside, either.”

“Inside…? Wait,” said Mae, “You’re saying the whole city is–?”

“Yep!” said Brendan, “This giant building is Mauville city!”

“You’re not just pulling my leg?”

“Nope!” Brendan grinned, “C’mon, I’ll show you!”

The two of them headed through the glass doors. Inside, the building looked sort of like a hotel-–the walls were a drab, regular-looking color, and the floor was made of polished stone tiles. There was a sign nearby with a map of the city, so Mae and Brendan walked over to take a look.

“See? It’s arranged in a square,” said Brendan, “All the important stuff–the Pokémon Center, the mart, all that–is in the center of the city, and less important stuff is out near the edges. The second and third floors are all houses and stuff, and the roof is a huge park! Pretty cool, huh?”

“Yeah…” Mae didn’t even want to think about the fire hazard this place posed, much less earthquake hazard, but she decided to humor Brendan with a nod and a smile.

“Mauville has four routes leading into it, so it’s become a huge hub of business and stuff,” Brendan continued, “It’s also a great place to shop, if you ask me. Oh, and the new food court is supposed to be really awesome… where do _you_ wanna go, Mae?”

Mae took a closer look at the directory, skimming over the list of shops. The Battle Institute caught her eye immediately, but it didn’t look like there was a Battle Tent here yet.

“Oh,” she said, eyes falling on the ‘Sports/Entertainment’ section, “There’s a bike shop here.”

“Huh? Oh yeah,” said Brendan, “The guy who owns it is super nice, too. Dad bought me a bike from him used a couple years ago, and he always does tune-ups for free.”

“Maybe I should check it out,” said Mae, “I had a bike back home, and it’d be way faster to get from place to place on a bike.”

“Sure would!” Brendan agreed, “I use my bike all the time.”

“Wanna check it out, Beni?” asked Mae.

“Yeah!” Beni nodded enthusiastically.

* * *

The bike shop was on the other side of town, so it took them a while to get there. On the way they stopped at the Mauville food court for lunch–and a couple of quick battles while they waited for their food. Once they reached the bike shop, the owner immediately noticed Mae’s dirty shoes. Upon hearing that she’d come all the way from Littleroot on foot, the owner decided that Mae deserved a bike. He gave her a choice of two: a fast model used for racing, and a slower model used for tricks. Mae picked the fast bike, figuring she’d rather cut down on travel time. After leaving the cycle shop, the two of them parted ways–Brendan was off to the gym, but Mae decided she wanted to rest a bit in the Pokémon Center first.

The next day, Mae set out to explore Mauville by herself. She went first to the rooftop park, cruising around on her new bike and battling any trainers she came across. At around noon she went back downstairs with a growling stomach. She put her bike away and let Beni out of his Pokéball.

“Where do you wanna go for lunch, Beni?” she asked, “Pokémon Center food is fine, but I kinda wanted to try that food court again.”

“Either’s fine by me!” said Beni.

“Then food court it is,” said Mae. She stretched, cracking the joints in her arms as she did, “I can’t wait to get my hands on those Magnemite Croquettes!”

Mae got out the map on her Pokénav to show her the way, and she and Beni set off. They passed shop after shop, each bustling with trainers and regular people alike. However, as she reached the end of the block, she noticed a shuttered shop up ahead. An older man was standing outside and talking to an old woman and younger man, both toting large suitcases. Mae could pick up parts of their conversation as she approached.

“I’m sorry, Hiroko, it’s just how it is,” the older man said, “Business really went downhill after the renovation, and I just couldn’t keep up–not to mention all the new gambling laws. Team Rocket really gave us game corners a bad name.”

“It’s really quite a shame,” said the old woman, “You were one of my biggest customers, Marv. The dolls were such a big draw!”

“I know…” Marv fidgeted a little, “But after what happened with Team Rocket, people started to think game corners were real shady enterprises. I just didn’t get traffic like I used to…”

“Well, it’s been really nice working with you all the same,” said Hiroko, “Why don’t we go to lunch? I’ll treat you to a nice big bowl of ramen.”

“Aw Hiroko, I shouldn’t…” Marv patted his beer belly nervously, but Hiroko would have none of it.

“One last time, Marv? For old times.”

Marv sighed.

“I can’t say no to that…”

The old woman nodded satisfactorily, and indicated to her blue-haired young companion that they should get going. The younger man turned to take the suitcases, and in that moment he spotted Mae. His eyes lit up in recognition, and he tugged on Hiroko’s sleeve.

“What is it, Ross–Oh!”

Mae smiled and waved nervously.

“You’re the girl Ross projected on back in Slateport, aren’t you?” said Hiroko, “I’m not so good with faces, but I know I’ve seen that green bandana before.”

“Yeah, that’s me…”

Ross ran right up to her, abandoning the suitcases. She hadn’t realized back at the market stand how much taller he was than her. He smiled at her kindly, and suddenly an image appeared before Mae’s eyes. Mae could see herself, Hiroko, Ross, and the game corner’s owner all enjoying a meal together in the food court. The image was gone just as quickly as it appeared.

“You want me to come with you…?” said Mae. Ross nodded emphatically.

“Ross, did you project again?” Hiroko called. Ross’s face fell, and he nodded guiltily back at her.

“What did I tell you about projecting, young man? Only me, you understand?”

Ross nodded again.

“Good grief! That boy is such a handful,” Hiroko shook her head, “Well, young lady? If you’d like to join us, you’re more than welcome. It’s the least I can do for your trouble.”

“Oh, thank you,” said Mae, “I was just on my way to the food court myself.”

“Ah, good. Let’s all walk together, then–and Ross, you behave yourself now!

* * *

Before long, the four of them piled into a booth at the Mauville food court, each with a buzzer for their meal. Hiroko and the game corner owner chatted for a little, each getting the other caught up on various happenings around the region. Ross fidgeted a little in his chair across from Mae, looking constantly from her to Hiroko.

“Hey, Hiroko?” said Mae after a break in the conversation, “Is Ross okay?”

“Hm?” Hiroko looked him over, “Oh, I bet he wants to talk to you. Project, I mean. He’s actually quite the storyteller when he uses his power–but he knows the rules!”

“Oh,” said Mae, “Well, if it’s alright with you, I wouldn’t mind if… you know. He just looks so bored over there.”

“Hmmm…” said Hiroko, “I shouldn’t let this become a habit for him, but I guess if you’re alright with it, it’s fine. Ross, go ahead. Mae doesn’t mind if you project on her a little.”

Ross practically beamed. He looked straight at her and nodded to her, indicating that he was ready to begin. As Mae met his gaze, images formed before her eyes. She saw scenes from unfamiliar cities and routes, from marketplaces and roadside rest stops. In some places Hiroko’s doll stand could be seen, with people gathering around to look. In others, Hiroko talked to businesslike people while toting a cart of dolls.

“These are all places you’ve been?” Mae found herself asking. Ross nodded again. Suddenly the scene faded to something completely different: Mae caught sight of a red and white Pokémon, but the image disappeared too quickly for her to make out what it was. Mae’s regular vision slowly returned, and she found Ross looking at her with an indescribable expression.

“What was that Pokémon…?” Mae wondered aloud. Ross tilted his head a little.

“The Pokémon you showed me–what was it?” Mae asked again.

Ross’ expression darkened a little, and he looked at his feet.

“Oh, you saw it too?” said Hiroko, “Ross showed you the red and white Pokémon, didn’t he?”

“Yeah, actually,” said Mae, “Do you know what it is, Hiroko?”

The old woman shook her head.

“No, I don’t, but I think that Pokémon must mean something to Ross. When we met, that was the first image he ever showed me. That was several years ago now.”

“How _did_ you meet, Hiroko?” asked the game corner owner, “I always assumed you hired him, but since he can’t talk, I never really figured how.”

“Well, it’s not a very long story,” said Hiroko, “I was on my way to set up shop in Slateport one morning when I found Ross asleep under a newspaper in my stall. You can imagine he gave me a bit of a fright! But I took pity on him, and got him cleaned up–he was in terrible shape; hadn’t eaten or washed in days, the poor thing. Afterwards he was so grateful that he wanted to stay with me, so I took him in. He’s been a big help to me ever since!”

“Do you know where he came from?” asked Mae.

Hiroko shook her head disdainfully.

“No, unfortunately. When I asked him, he just showed me the red and white Pokémon–almost as though he didn’t quite understand the question. Well, I figured that he was here now, and not much to be done about that. I never managed to find out his name, so I just started calling him ‘Ross’ one day, and he answered to it.”

Ross nodded with a gentle smile.

“He’s a sweet boy,” said Hiroko, “He really seems to have taken a shine to you, Mae. Have you met before?”

“Not before we met at Slateport,” said Mae. “I actually moved here from Johto not too long ago, so it’s hard to think we’d have met before then.”

“I see,” said Hiroko, “Well, it could be that you’re so tolerant of his projecting. Most people get mad at him–myself included!”

“I think it’s neat,” said Mae.

At that moment their buzzers went off; Mae’s Magnemite Croquettes were ready, as were Hiroko and the others’ Mauville Ramen bowls. The four of them got their food, and there wasn’t much conversation to be had after that. Mae returned to the Pokémon Center after lunch, head swimming in questions about Ross–-but she knew that even Hiroko wouldn’t be able to answer many of them. What intrigued her most had been that red and white Pokémon. She felt like she’d seen something like it somewhere… but where?


	23. Wally

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While staying in Mauville, Mae runs across another one of her new friends...

Mae remained in Mauville for a few more days, battling and making friends all over town. She did some shopping as well, buying some hold items for her Pokémon, and a new chain for Beni’s necklace. She even tried her hand at the Battle Institute, and after five straight grueling battles-–the last three of which she lost handily–-she was given an average score.

“Well, I hope _that_ doesn’t go on my permanent trainer record,” Mae commented to Beni on her way back to the Pokémon Center, report card in hand, “Maybe in a few weeks I’ll come back and try again?”

“Worth a shot,” Beni shrugged, “That place was pretty hard though. Five straight battles, no items, final destination? I don’t even think experienced trainers could do five in a row without stopping.”

“I hope none of the Battle Tents are like that,” said Mae, “I don’t mind not using items or anything, but the difficulty curve back there was nuts–-and, hey! Where did _you_ learn the final destination joke?!”

As they turned a corner, Mae noticed a small commotion at the Pokémon Gym a few blocks away. A couple of trainers had gathered around the entrance, surrounding a young boy and an older man who were blocking the door. As Mae approached, she could hear their argument. The boy’s voice sounded familiar…

“Uncle, I’m begging you! I want to challenge this gym so I can prove how much stronger I am!”

“Now, just hold on a minute,” said the older man, “It’s certainly true that you’ve become much healthier since moving to Verdanturf with your Pokémon, but don’t you think challenging a gym after two weeks might be pushing it a little? A Pokémon Gym isn’t something to take lightly, you know–!”

The boy shook his head defiantly, his messy green hair swishing as he did. Mae recognized him in an instant: it was Wally!

“I’m not pushing it!” said Wally, “When I’m with Ralts, I feel like I can beat anyone! I think I’m ready to try challenging a gym, uncle!”

“And I’m saying you’re not–!”

Wally turned away to look at the door of the gym. He took a deep breath, then let it out.

“I’m going to challenge this gym, uncle, no matter what–!”

Suddenly Wally noticed Mae’s reflection in the glass door. He jumped and turned around, spotting her in the crowd.

“Oh! Mae!” he ran right up to her, “Long time no see!”

“Yeah, same!” said Mae, “Um, if this is a bad time, though…”

“No, it’s not!” said Wally, “Actually, it’s perfect timing. Listen, Mae. Me and Ralts have gotten a lot stronger since we first met. We’ve been growing a lot together! I want to prove that to my uncle, so…!”

Wally closed his eyes and took another deep breath, then looked Mae squarely in the eyes.

“Please, Mae… help me out and have a battle with me!”

“A battle?” Mae looked at Beni, then back to Wally, “I don’t know, Wally… I don’t know if battling me will help your case any…”

“See?” said Wally’s uncle, “Look at her Pokémon, Wally! That girl is a much more experienced trainer than you are. You won’t stand a chance!”

“That’s not true! We can do it!” said Wally, “Please, Mae. You’ve got to help me. If you don’t, my uncle will never believe I’ve gotten stronger…”

“Well, alright,” said Mae, “If you’ve really gotten stronger, then show me what you’ve got!”

“T-thank you!” said Wally, “Alright, Ralts, we’re going to win this one! We have to!”

Wally took a Pokéball from his pocket and awkwardly tossed it onto the sidewalk. His Ralts popped from it, looking mostly unchanged from the last time Mae had seen it.

“You should probably go easy on him,” said Beni.

“I can try?” said Mae, “Uhh, alright… I’ll go with–Raiden!”

Mae took a Pokéball from her fanny pack and threw it in the air. It opened, and her newly-caught Electrike appeared on the path across from Ralts. Electrike growled a little bit, and Ralts took a step back.

“Ralts, don’t let it scare you!” said Wally, “Uh… use… disarming voice?”

“Raiden, spark!”

Electrike moved faster–sparks flew out from its body as it rushed at Ralts and tackled it with full force. Ralts flew backwards, and Wally ran to catch it. His Pokémon seemed ready for another turn, however, so he set it back down on the field. Ralts opened its mouth and let out a terrifying cry, and Raiden yelped in response.

“Yikes!” said Mae, covering her own ears, “Raiden, use quick attack!”

Riden howled before leaping into action, racing toward Ralts at a speed almost impossible for the eye to follow. It slammed into Ralts, knocking it back into Wally’s legs.

“You call that going easy?!” said Beni.

“I’m sorry?!” Mae shot back, “Wally, is your Pokémon okay–?”

Ralts shakily got to its feet. It faced down Electrike bravely, but Mae could tell it wouldn’t last another turn.

“Ralts, use–-use?” Wally froze up, looking around worriedly. A sizable crowd had formed around them in the short time since the battle started, and all eyes were on him, “Um…! M-magical leaf!”

Ralts raised its tiny arms, and floating leaves in all the colors of the rainbow appeared on either side of it. Ralts sent these leaves flying towards Electrike. The attack hit hard, but Electrike simply shook itself off.

“Okay, Raiden, now use quick attack one more time!”

“Um, Ralts, use–!”

Electrike moved before Wally had a chance to finish; in the blink of an eye it was already on top of Ralts. The tiny Pokémon stumbled and fell backwards, unconscious. The whole crowd fell dead silent.

“S… sorry, Ralts…” said Wally, “We lost…”

Wally recalled his Pokémon quietly. Sensing that the drama was over, the crowd began to disperse.

“Sorry, Wally,” said Mae, recalling her Pokémon, “I tried to go easy, but…”

“No, it’s okay!” said Wally, “Thanks, Mae. I lost because I wasn’t strong enough yet. Being a trainer is tougher than I thought… Maybe I really can’t become a trainer like this…”

“Wally, there’s no need to be so down on yourself,” said Wally’s uncle, “It’s true that you lost to your friend, but there’s nothing stopping you from getting stronger! All you need to do is keep growing.”

“He’s right,” said Mae, “I think you’ve had a pretty good start, but there’s a lot more work to being a trainer than just making your Pokémon battle. With Pokémon training, you only get out as much as you put in, you know? So, if you want to be strong, you have to be willing to get out of your comfort zone a little. At least, that’s what I’ve learned being a trainer so far.”

“Oh, okay…” said Wally, “That’s good advice, Mae. Thank you.”

Wally turned to his uncle.

“Okay,” he said, “I lost, so I’ll go back to Verdanturf for now. But–I’m going to keep practicing, and me and Ralts are going to get way stronger. Mae!”

Wally turned back to face Mae, determination glimmering in his eyes.

“I lost to you today, but I’m going to get much stronger from here,” he said, “Much, much stronger! And one day, I’m going to battle you again, and win!”

Mae couldn’t help smiling.

“I’ll be looking forward to it!” she said.

“And, um, if it’s okay,” said Wally, “I really feel like I learned a lot from battling with you, so… if you want… I’d really like it if you visited me in Verdanturf sometime, so we could maybe… train together…”

Wally looked at his feet sheepishly.

“I think that sounds fun,” said Mae, “Maybe I’ll see you in Verdanturf, then?”

“Y-yeah,” said Wally, “S… see you around, Mae!”

Wally walked over to his uncle, and the two of them took their leave. Mae watched them go until they turned the corner and disappeared, then looked down at Beni.

“I feel a little bad, beating him like that…” Mae admitted.

“Well, at least he didn’t cry,” said Beni.

“Yeah, _that’s_ comforting.”

The two of them headed back to the Pokémon Center, neither saying much to each other. Mae mulled over her options as they walked. Now that she’d challenged the Battle Institute, there wasn’t much left for her to do in Mauville–aside from the gym, which she already wasn’t sure she wanted to try. She’d heard that Mauville’s gym was themed to electric-types, and she didn’t yet have any Pokémon that could counter electric-types reliably.

_Maybe it’s time to move on already?_

Mauville had roads leading in four directions, and she’d already come in from the south. That left east to the forests, north to the mountains, or west to Verdanturf…

_Well, I guess spending more time with Wally couldn’t hurt._


	24. Verdanturf

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mae goes to Verdanturf to visit Wally, only to discover the location of her next Battle Tent challenge.

_Mae traveled to Verdanturf not long after her battle with Wally, and was delighted to find that Verdanturf had its own Battle Tent. She spent about a month hanging out with Wally and training together with him. She taught him some basics of battling, and with her help he caught a few more Pokémon. Both Wally’s health and his skills as a trainer improved quite a bit._

_Mae decided to take on the Battle Tent challenge, but was totally decimated in the first round. Verdanturf’s Tent’s rules stated that trainers could not give their Pokémon any commands, and Mae could only watch helplessly as her Pokémon tried to fight without her. Their teamwork fell apart, and Mae returned to the Pokémon Center with a heavy heart. The next day she met up with Wally again, but didn’t know where to go from here…_

“Wow, Mae. That’s pretty rough.”

The two of them sat around a table at the Pokémon Center, with Beni nearby. Mae had her Pokédex out, and was looking at each of her Pokémon’s stats absentmindedly. Her Pokémon all knew powerful enough moves, but some of them just hadn’t used them–almost blatantly avoided it, even.

“I don’t get it,” she said, “We’ve been training together for a while now, but my Pokémon still didn’t fight the way I would’ve told them to…”

“I don’t get it either,” Beni shrugged, “I know I used the moves that would’ve knocked ‘em out. But sometimes… I dunno, I just froze up. It’s hard battling without you, Mae!”

“Maybe we could do more training?” Wally offered, “Or, I don’t know. We’ve been training a lot as it is…”

“How do we prepare for something like this?” said Mae, “I guess I could just have my Pokémon fight wild Pokémon and not tell them what to do, but… I feel like that’d just end badly.”

“Yeah…” Wally sighed, “I just wish I knew how to help you, Mae. I’m not very good at this myself…”

Mae put her hand to her forehead and sighed.

“What if I just skipped this one?” she said, “There are other tents, I can come back to Verdanturf later.”

“But Mae, what if we never make it back here?” said Beni, “We’re here, so we gotta at least try!”

“We _did_ try though.”

“Yeah, but–!”

Mae realized that it had suddenly become very quiet in the Pokémon Center. She looked up and noticed that the glass doors were open, and standing in the doorway was a silver-haired man dressed in a sharp suit. He took a look around before walking inside briskly, the clack-clack of his expensive-looking shoes breaking the silence. The other trainers in the lobby immediately began whispering to each other.

“Is that–it’s Steven Stone!”

“Oh my god, it’s the real deal!”

Steven walked up to the counter and, chatting briefly with the nurse, had his Pokémon healed. He then turned to face the lobby and smiled amicably.

“Yes, I’m Steven Stone,” he said, “Anyone who wants autographs, now is your chance.”

He was immediately mobbed by trainers, male and female alike. Mae watched in bewilderment as Steven gave out autographs, laughing gently as he did. He didn’t seem fazed by his fans; in fact, he was fairly accommodating.

“I had no idea Steven was so famous,” she said, “Back in Dewford people seemed to know him, but I just assumed it was because he’s a regular there.”

“Huh?” said Wally, “You’ve met him before?”

“Yeah. A month-ish ago, I think. It was back when I first started as a trainer.”

“Wow,” said Wally, “That’s so lucky, Mae. I don’t know a lot about him, but I hear his name a lot, so I assumed he’s someone famous. Man, Wanda isn’t going to believe it when I tell her I saw a famous person today…”

The crowd began to thin around Steven, and he took a quick glance around the room to make sure he hadn’t missed anyone. His eyes fell on Mae, and his face lit up.

“Oh!” he said, “I think I recognize that face. We’ve met before, haven’t we?”

“Yeah, we have,” said Mae, “Back in Dewford.”

“I see!” Steven made his way over to them, “You must be the ‘Mae’ I have registered in my Match Call. The other day I was wondering who that was. I recalled trading numbers with someone in Granite Cave, but not much else.”

Steven smiled in embarrassment.

“Sorry, sorry. I’m not that good at remembering faces, I’m afraid.”

“It’s okay, me either,” said Mae.

“And this young man is…?” said Steven.

“M-my name’s Wally!” said Wally, “I’m from Petalburg, but I’m visiting my cousins in Verdanturf! It’s an honor to meet you, M-Mr. Stone sir!”

“Please,” said Steven cordially, “Only my father goes by Mr. Stone. ‘Steven’ is just fine.”

Steven walked over to the couch and indicated to the spot next to Mae.

“May I?”

“Sure!”

Steven took a seat and let out a sigh, seemingly grateful to be sitting down.

“What brings you out to Verdanturf, Steven?” asked Mae.

“I was on my way to Mauville for business, but I got distracted in Rusturf Tunnel,” he admitted, “Did you know that you can find agates in Rusturf tunnel? It’s particularly known for its plume agate.”

“What’s an ag-it?” asked Wally.

“Here,” Steven took something from his pocket–a fairly unassuming (and judging by the dirt still caking off it, freshly hewn) chunk of rock. It looked a little bit like a rock sandwich, with darker rock on the top and bottom framing a lighter, translucent mineral in the middle. Mae noticed that the lighter mineral had a sort of bubbly appearance.

“Agates are formed when superheated groundwater flows between cracks in igneous rocks–ah, why am I boring you with the technical lingo?” Steven shook his head, “They’re highly prized for their colors and patterns. This one happens to be white, but they can be any color of the rainbow. Many people polish them to make jewelry.”

Mae turned the rock over in her hands before handing it to Wally to look at.

“This one is called a plume agate because of its bubbly appearance,” Steven went on, “Plume agates make good jewelry, but personally, I prefer freshly broken ones myself. Seeing how the light plays off the plumes in 3D is really something.”

“Yeah, it _is_ cool,” Wally held the rock up to the light for a better look. Light filtered through the edges, while the plumes’ centers remained opaque.

“And you, Mae?” asked Steven. Wally handed him the rock back, “What brings you to Verdanturf?”

“My friend Wally invited me to stay with him for a while, but then I learned there was a Battle Tent here, so I decided to challenge it,” said Mae.

“Oh, I see,” said Steven, “I’ve heard of the Battle Tents, but never tried them myself. Did you manage to win?”

“No…” said Mae. She looked down, “Actually, I got wrecked pretty hard.”

“Ouch,” said Steven.

“This tent’s rules are really brutal,” said Mae, “You can’t tell your Pokémon what to do at all! You just have to watch as they try to battle for themselves.”

“That does sound rough,” said Steven.

“I really want to try again, but I’m not sure how to prepare for it,” said Mae, “How do I train my Pokémon to fight without me?”

“Hmm,” Steven raised his hand to his chin, “This is a difficult endeavor for sure, but I believe in you, Mae. Can I offer a suggestion?”

“Hit me.” Mae was ready to try just about anything.

“I think you should try looking at this from your Pokémon’s perspective,” Steven continued, “Your Pokémon all have different personalities and natures. Sometimes, their preferred fighting style is different from yours. I would find out what your Pokémon prefer, and then craft strategies with their preferences in mind.”

“But how do I–oh,” Mae glanced over at Beni, “If I have Beni ask my Pokémon how they feel, I’ll have a better idea of what they want.”

“Yeah!” said Beni, “I’d be happy to translate for you, Mae!”

“Oh! Your Pokémon can talk!” Steven exclaimed, “That’s something you don’t see every day. Since you can communicate with your Pokémon like this, you’re already at an advantage to other trainers.”

He nodded, as if sure of something.

“I can sense an immeasurable potential in you, Mae, so I look forward to seeing where your journey takes you. Perhaps one day you and I will get to battle…”

Steven waved his hand, as if brushing off the thought.

“Not now, of course. If I were to fight you now, I’m afraid you’d be no match for me. I wouldn’t want to fight a battle so obviously unfair.”

“That makes sense,” said Mae.

“But one day, it might be fun to take you on with my full power. Two trainers coming at each other with everything they’ve got-–that’s what I like to see in a battle. Don’t you agree?”

Mae nodded. She couldn’t quite find the words to convey how much she agreed, how perfectly he’d expressed exactly how she felt. It made her heart race a little bit-–just a little bit.

“On that note,” Steven stood up, checking his watch, “I’m afraid I must be going. My meeting in Mauville will likely be starting soon, and I shouldn’t be late.”

“Don’t let us keep you!” said Wally.

“It was good seeing you again, Steven,” said Mae.

“Likewise,” said Steven, “I’m already looking forward to the next time we meet.”

And with a cordial smile, he was off. He waved at them over his shoulder as he left. Mae couldn’t take her eyes off him, even after the Pokémon Center’s glass doors had shut behind him. Her heart pounded in her ears.

_I don’t know why, but… I’m looking forward to it too._

_ _

“Mae?” said Wally. Mae shook her head.

“Yeah?”

“You kinda zoned out there… are you okay?”

“Haha, yeah,” Mae waved him off, “We should go get training. Beni, you’ve got a lot of talking to do.”

“No problem!” said Beni, “I never shut up anyway!”

“Can I come?” asked Wally.

“Of course!” said Mae, “I’m gonna need all the help I can get!”

Wally practically glowed.

“T-thank you, Mae. I’ll do my best to help however I can!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> drops ship hints approximately once every 5,000 years


	25. Meteor Falls

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mae's journey takes her north to Fallarbor Town, where another Battle Tent awaits.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would've written out Mae's fight at the battle tent but I honestly didn't feel like it, whoops

_Mae worked together with Beni to learn of her Pokemon’s preferred fighting styles, then arranged a team of Pokémon that liked to fight the same way she did. After another few weeks of training with Wally and Beni, Mae returned to the Verdanturf battle tent and won her second symbol. As she left the tent, Scott came to congratulate her, and informed her that a new tent had just opened in Fallarbor to the north. Saying goodbye to Wally, Mae trekked back to Mauville and then headed north._

The road to Fallarbor was long and arduous, even on a bike; though a town called Lavaridge supposedly fell between Mauville and Fallarbor, it was difficult to reach from the south. Mae had to stop for a few days at a roadside inn to rest before starting the last leg of her trip. Route 113 fell in the shadow of Mt. Chimney, and local winds blew all of the active volcano’s ash northwest to the route. The falling ash made it hard to see what lay ahead, and progress was slow going. At last, covered in ash from head to toe, Mae arrived in Fallarbor.

Fallarbor was a sparsely-built town, with buildings here and there along a steep-walled canyon. The outskirts of the town were lined with verdant fields, vines and stalks bulging with the late summer harvest. The town’s Contest Hall could be seen from the fields; it was easily the tallest and brightest building for miles. As Mae approached, she noticed a Battle Tent had been set up right next to the Contest Hall. It had been like that in Slateport and Verdanturf, too; Mae wondered if Scott had built his tents next to Contest Halls on purpose.

Mae wasted no time in starting to prepare for her next tent challenge. The morning after she arrived she was already back on her bike, riding around the area and looking for trainers to fight. Rumors around town had it that the Battle Tent’s house rules involved some kind of timed matches, where trainers only had a few turns to knock out each other’s Pokémon. If neither had fainted when time was up, the healthier Pokémon would win the round. Mae would either have to defeat her opponents quickly, or train Pokémon that outlasted their opponents while still dishing out damage.

Mae tried the tent after about a week of training, but got wiped out in the second battle. Because she already had two tent symbols, the tent trainers used stronger Pokémon to fight her–-add that to the fast-paced rules, and Mae had a hard time keeping up with her opponents. With a heavy heart, Mae made her way back to the Pokémon Center, wondering how best to change her strategy. Should she lean towards defense, or speed?

Mae healed her Pokémon, and switched out a few of them for new ones she’d caught during her training. Mightyena and Shroomish hadn’t been particularly helpful lately, so she swapped them out for Swablu and Sandshrew. Sandshrew had a high defense rating, which meant it would better withstand physical attacks, while Swablu’s high special defense meant the same for non-physical moves. Her Pokémon didn’t yet have enough power to defeat their opponents in under three turns, so Mae would have to bank on outlasting them. She put the two newer Pokémon in the basket of her bike as she headed out to Route 114 for more training.

Not long into her ride, however, a voice called out to her.

“Hey! Mae!”

Mae slowed a little bit as she glanced over her shoulder. Brendan was pedaling up to her on a considerably slower bike than hers.

“Boy, am I glad to see _you_!” said Brendan as he finally reached her, “Something really bad just happened, and I was worried I’d have to handle it myself!”

“Something bad?” said Mae.

“Really bad!” said Brendan, “Professor Cozmo was just up and kidnapped by some nuts calling themselves Team Something or Other!”

“Professor who–!?” said Mae.

“Professor Cozmo? Hello?” said Brendan, “He’s Hoenn’s leading expert on meteorites!”

“Never heard of him,” said Mae.

“Well, I guess it makes sense since you just moved here…” said Brendan, “Anyway, he’s a friend of my dad’s so I was up here visiting him, but when I got to his house he wasn’t there, and his wife told me he was out at Meteor Falls with those Team Something people–that’s when I knew something was up!”

“So you’re going after them?” said Mae.

“Well, yeah!” said Brendan, “Professor Cozmo is a good dude, but he’s really gullible. If you show even the least bit of interest in his work, he’d happily go anywhere with you, no questions asked. Who knows what they could be doing to him right now!?”

“But who would kidnap a guy studying meteorites?” Mae tilted her head, “Doesn’t really seem like the most lucrative science to me.”

“I bet those Team Whatever people were after the meteor he’s been researching,” Brendan continued, “That’s the only thing they could possibly want, right?”

“Yeah, but why? It doesn’t make sense.”

“Well, let’s rescue the professor first, and then ask questions later!” said Brendan, “If you’re gonna help, follow me!”

Brendan sped ahead, pedaling with all his might. Mae followed, doing her best not to outstrip him.

* * *

Meteor Falls was a considerable distance from town, but on bikes it was just a short ride. The two of them pedaled up a rough path into craggy hills, speeding past any trainers that might have tried to battle them. Mae noticed that broad swaths of land were riddled with huge craters. In one instance, the path led them through the middle of one.

_Well, I guess they don’t call it Meteor Falls for nothing. No wonder a meteor scientist lives out here…_

Before long they reached the entrance to a cave, this one less decorated than Rusturf Tunnel or Granite Cave. A sign indicated that the cave went through to Rustboro, but other than that, it seemed fairly untouched by humans. Brendan and Mae put their bikes away hastily, and Mae recalled her new Pokémon, letting Beni out instead.

“He should be in here,” said Brendan, “I hope they didn’t go too deep; there’s a bunch of places in here that you need a special HM to get to.”

“Fingers crossed,” said Mae. She nodded to Brendan, and the two of them headed inside together.

Inside, the cave was brightly lit–an opening in the ceiling shed sunlight directly into a pool of water, and light refracted to fill the whole cave. A giant waterfall roared down from the pool, flowing as a river all the way down to another entrance across the cavern. The room was spacious, and Mae had a good view of almost everything from the entrance. She spotted some people standing on a rocky ledge not far from the waterfall–a man in a lab coat, and two people dressed in blue.

“That must be them,” said Brendan, “Those weirdos in uniforms.”

“I recognize those outfits,” said Mae, “They must be with Team Aqua.”

“Team who?”

“Team Aqua,” Mae repeated, “A bunch of troublemakers bent on expanding the seas or something. I’ve run into them a couple of times.”

“Yeesh,” said Brendan, “Anyway, let’s go grab the professor and get out of here.”

“Right-–wait. We’re not just gonna barge in, are we–!?”

It was too late, Brendan had already taken off down the path and was halfway across the wood bridge separating them from the rocky ledge. Mae followed more slowly, Beni in tow.

“Hey you jerks!” Brendan shouted, “Let Professor Cozmo go!”

“Huh?” The Aqua members turned to face them. One of them wore the usual uniform, but the other was dressed in something like a blue wetsuit. Her dark hair reached all the way to her back, and she wore a pair of swim goggles over her forehead.

“I said, let the professor go!” Brendan repeated.

The black-haired woman laughed.

“Kid, I think you’ve got things mixed up,” she said, “What, did you think we kidnapped the professor? We just asked him to come with us for a little while, and he came on his own!”

“I’m not in any danger!” the professor piped up, “At least, I don’t think I am…”

“We’re just having a little chat,” said the black-haired woman smoothly, “Nothing to see here, kid. Run along now.”

“I don’t believe you,” said Brendan, “If you were _really_ just talking to him, why wouldn’t you do it at his house?”

The black-haired woman’s eyebrow twitched.

“Yeah, that IS fishy,” said Mae, “Coming all the way out to a remote place like this, with nobody around…”

“It’s almost like you’re planning on doing something nasty!” Brendan finished for her.

The woman’s smile twisted into a frown.

“You’re sharp,” she said, “Guess you saw right through me, huh? Fine. Kids who don’t know how to mind their own business oughta get a good thrashing. You better not back out now, either!”

The woman nodded to her associate, who took a Pokéball from his belt.

“I’m gonna make you rue the day you got in Aqua Admin Shelly’s way!” she said, “Let’s go!”

“Bring it on!” said Brendan, “Ready, Mae?”

“You bet!”

Shelly and the Aqua grunt tossed Pokéballs, and from them came a mucky-looking Pokémon and a Mightyena similar to Mae’s. Mae recognized the mucky Pokémon as Grimer–they were common pests back in Goldenrod, particularly in the underground. A foul stench filled the air, and Mae tried to resist the urge to pinch her nose shut.

“Beni, you’re up!”

“Zuzu, let’s go!”

Beni hopped onto the field as Brendan tossed a Pokéball. A medium-sized blue and orange Pokémon popped from it and took its place next to Beni. Mae figured that it was the evolved form of Brendan’s Mudkip.

“Alright, Beni, use double kick on Mightyena!”

“Zuzu, use mud shot on Grimer!”

“Mightyena, snarl!”

“Grimer, sludge!”

Beni moved first, leaping forward and hitting Mightyena with a couple of lighting-fast kicks. The attack was super-effective, but the dog Pokémon was tougher than it looked; it turned on Beni and let out a threatening snarl, dealing damage both to Beni and to Zuzu nearby. Zuzu moved next, spitting a stream of mud at Grimer. The attack was super effective, and Grimer cried out in pain. It tried to shoot a stream of sludge back, but Zuzu managed to get out of the way.

“Beni, double kick on Mightyena again!”

“Zuzu, you got this! Mud bomb on Grimer!”

“Mightyena, snarl!”

“Grimer, uh–disable–!”

Beni moved faster than Mightyena could blink, hitting it with another couple of rapid-fire kicks. Mightyena couldn’t handle the onslaught this time and fell defeated to the cave floor. Shelly recalled it, clicking her tongue irritably. Grimer hardly fared any better; Zuzu’s second attack was super-effective as well, and the mucky Pokémon collapsed in a heap on the ground. Its trainer recalled it nervously.

“I’m all out of Pokémon…!” said the grunt.

“Ugh, do I have to do everything myself?” Shelly tossed another Pokéball, “Carvanha, take them out!”

From Shelly’s Pokéball came a mean-looking red and blue fish Pokémon. It opened its mouth, revealing sharp fangs.

“Beni, come back!” said Mae. Beni leaped back to stand beside her as she threw another Pokéball, “Raiden, it’s your turn!”

The Pokéball opened, and Mae’s Electrike popped from it. It growled at Carvanha threateningly. Mae didn’t need to use her Pokédex to check up on Carvanha’s typing; if it was a fish Pokémon, it was most likely a water type.

“Carvanha, assurance!”

“Raiden, use spark!”

Electrike moved first; he surrounded his body in electric sparks and charged towards Carvanha, hitting it hard. However, the dog Pokémon let out a yelp of pain as he made contact with Carvanha and leaped back towards Mae, tail between his legs.

“Look out, Mae,” said Brendan, “Carvanha’s body is covered in spiky scales. That’s it’s Rough Skin ability–anytime an opponent makes contact, the opponent gets hurt too.”

“So I’ll have to hit it without touching it…?!” Mae racked her brains; she didn’t think Electrike knew any non-contact moves that did damage. Meanwhile, Carvanha slapped Electrike on the back with one of its fins, dealing average damage.

“Carvanha can’t take more than one or two more hits…” said Mae, “Maybe we’ll just have to tough it out! Raiden, spark again!”

“Carvanha, screech!”

Carvanha opened its mouth and let out a deafening shriek. Electrike whined and buried his nose in his paws, and Mae clapped her hands over her ears.

“No you don’t–! Raiden, get ‘em!”

Electrike howled, surrounding himself with lightning a second time before rushing at Carvanha in a full-on tackle. Although Electrike took some damage from Rough Skin, ultimately its own attack was stronger. Carvanha collapsed on the cave floor, unconscious. Shelly bit her lip as she recalled it.

“Ugh, I can’t believe this,” she said, “I thought I’d go a little easy just because you’re a kid, but obviously that was a mistake.”

“Good job, Mae,” said Brendan as he recalled his own Pokémon, “Now… give us back the professor!”

“Yeah!” said Beni.

Electrike barked threateningly.

“Sorry, no can do,” said Shelly, “He’s got something we need, and we’re not leaving here until we get it–even if little brats like you get in our way!”

“Hmph. Troubled by mere children? I expected more from an administrator of Team Aqua.”

Brendan and Mae jumped.

“W-who said that?!” said Brendan.

The sound of footsteps approached, and everyone turned to see a few new faces coming up the stairs nearby. An authoritative man dressed in red appeared at the top of the ledge, followed by two other men in similar outfits. Mae recognized one of them-–his spiky purple hair would be a dead giveaway anywhere. It was the Team Magma spy she’d met at the Oceanic Museum. Did this make the others members of Team Magma as well…?

The authoritative man peered at them through his horn-rimmed glasses with a look somewhere between disgust and annoyance.

“Interesting that I should find you here,” he said in a nasaly voice, “I thought Team Aqua preferred to make fools of themselves in public, rather than in a secluded place such as this?”

“Hmph!” said Shelly, “Even Team Magma showed their faces, huh? Guess we don’t have a choice, then.”

She turned to her subordinate.

“Grab the meteorite and let’s scram!” she hissed.

“Aye aye!” said the grunt. He ran up to Professor Cozmo, who took several panicked steps backward. The grunt grabbed the professor’s shoulder bag and made a break for it, pushing past Brendan and Mae as he went.

“Later days, brats!” shouted Shelly as she followed her subordinate out.


	26. Steven's Hypothesis

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Team Aqua may have escaped, but all hope is not yet lost...

“Wait–!” said Brendan. He started to run after them.

“Don’t bother,” said the bespectacled man, “With your short legs, you’ll never catch up. You don’t even know where they’re taking that meteorite, do you?”

“N…no…” Brendan admitted.

“Maxie, sir,” said the second newcomer, a portly man with brown hair, “We ought to give chase to Team Aqua, or else…”

“Yes, yes,” said Maxie, “We still have time. Those buffoons will have enough trouble figuring out which way is up on that blasted rock.”

Maxie began to approach Brendan and Mae, but Professor Cozmo stepped in front of them.

“I remember you,” he said defensively, “From last time…”

“Last time?” said Mae, “You mean this isn’t the first time you’ve been kidnapped?!”

“Correct,” said Maxie, “That was… how many years ago was it, now?”

“Seven, I think,” said the portly man.

“Thank you,” said Maxie, “In any case, there was a time when we of Team Magma sought the meteorite’s power for ourselves-–to little avail, of course. An average trainer not unlike yourself managed to undermine our plans. Now we have no interest in such things. This time we mean you no harm, Professor Cozmo.”

“W-well, that’s good, at least…” the professor seemed relieved.

“How do I know I can trust you?” said Brendan, “Team Aqua won the professor’s trust pretty quickly, too!”

“I assure you, Team Magma is not the same as we were seven years ago,” said Maxie, “We work for the future happiness of all mankind, and our platform is one of responsible land usage. We do important research to ensure that the coming generations in Hoenn will have somewhere to live. Before, we tried to use expedient means to reach that goal–stealing meteors, awakening dangerous Pokémon–but we have seen the error of our ways and reformed.”

“Okay…” said Brendan.

“I believe him,” said Mae. At the very least, the fact that she hadn’t yet run into trouble with Team Magma was a good sign.

“Thank you,” said Maxie, “Scrubbing the dirt from our name has been a slow process, but we have well and truly changed our ways. I wish I could say the same of Team Aqua, but that is simply not the case. They made an effort to reform at first, but from their recent activity, it seems that effort was for nothing.”

“I wonder why…” said Mae.

“Never mind their reasons,” said Maxie, “We of Team Magma are keeping watch on them, so if you’re against them, that makes you our ally. Left unchecked, Team Aqua could be a grave threat to us all. Their goal is to enlarge the sea, but I doubt they understand exactly what that would mean.”

Mae nodded. Maxie turned to his subordinates.

“And now, we make haste to Mt. Chimney,” said Maxie, “I have no doubt that’s where those buffoons ended up.”

“But why?” asked the purple-haired man.

“The machine from last time…” Maxie grimaced, “I don’t remember hearing that anyone removed it. Considering that the plans for the machine disappeared from my office not long ago, I have a hunch that Team Aqua may be planning to use it for themselves.”

“Would a machine that old still…?” began the portly man.

“It’s hard to say,” Maxie frowned, “Brodie, put out a call for reinforcements. They will likely have others already at the mountain, and I don’t want to be outnumbered.”

“Understood,” said the purple-haired man.

Maxie turned back to Mae and the others.

“And now, we depart. Take care of yourselves. Team Aqua is a dangerous opponent–-fight them if you’d like, but know that it may be better to leave this sort of thing to adults like us.”

“Right,” said Brendan, “Good luck.”

Maxie nodded to his subordinates, and the three of them took their leave. The purple-haired man winked at Mae as he passed her-–he must have recognized her from the museum. Nobody spoke until the three of them were out of earshot.

“Team Aqua? Team Magma?” Brendan frowned, “I remember hearing about those guys, but not much. This sure is confusing… but–-wait!” Brendan turned to the professor, “Forget those guys! Professor, are you okay?”

“I’m fine…” said the professor quietly.

“Let’s get you back to Fallarbor, okay?” said Brendan.

“Yeah…” said the professor, “That meteorite, the one they took-–it’s not the same one from the first time. I only found it about a year ago, deep here in Meteor Falls. Actually, it wasn’t even me who found it. It was-–!”

“Me, wasn’t it?”

Mae and Brendan turned as another newcomer headed up the stairs toward them. This time, Mae recognized him in an instant-–it was Steven!

“Yes!” said the professor, “Steven! It’s good to see you!”

“Likewise,” said Steven, “I was training deeper in the cave and heard the sound of your battle, so I came as fast as I could–but it looks like I missed all the action.”

“Yeah, we managed to beat them,” said Brendan, “But those goons took the meteor anyway!”

“Ugh, that’s just like them, isn’t it?” said Steven, “Team Aqua never did play by the rules.”

Steven put his hand to his chin thoughtfully.

“There’s something bothering me even more than that,” he said, “Laura told me what happened when she met you, Mae, and it’s been nagging at the back of my head ever since. Rusturf Tunnel was a coincidence, the Oceanic Museum was suspicious, but now Meteor Falls, even…”

“What do you mean?” asked Mae.

“Four years ago, Teams Aqua and Magma caused a terrible calamity here in Hoenn-–you may have heard about it, though perhaps you were a little young to understand. Leading up to that event, both teams had been active for several years, striking in Rustboro, Slateport, Meteor Falls, and many other places after that.”

“…Those are all places where Team Aqua struck this time, too,” Mae caught on, “You’re right, something’s fishy.”

“It almost seems like someone is trying to replicate the events from four years ago…” said Steven, “To what end, I cannot say. I can’t imagine why anyone would want to-–least of all Team Aqua. It was their shortsightedness that almost brought about the destruction of Hoenn. For a while I thought they’d reformed, but perhaps they were even more shortsighted than I thought…”

Steven gave Mae a serious look.

“Mae… if you’re planning on going after them, be careful. Team Aqua isn’t above cheating to get their way.”

Mae nodded.

“I’ll be careful,” she said. She looked down at her Electrike, “With an electric-type on my side, I bet Team Aqua will be a piece of cake!”

Electrike barked back in agreement.

“What about you, Steven?” asked Brendan, “Are you gonna help too?”

“I want to, but…” Steven grimaced, “I mentioned training earlier; I’m working on a secondary team, so I don’t have my usual lineup with me. If it was my usual team, I could stop Team Aqua singlehandedly, but as things stand… It would do more harm than good for me to come along, I’m afraid.”

“Got it,” said Mae, “Well, that’s fine. Team Magma said they’re going after them, and I have Raiden. We should be able to hold our own.”

Even as she said it, she felt a little uncertain. She would definitely feel more comfortable if Steven was there to help, even if just to provide backup.

“I certainly hope so,” said Steven. Suddenly he seemed to notice something, “Oh–-Mae? Your Combusken… can I see that item it’s holding?”

“Huh?” said Beni, “Y’mean my necklace?”

“Yes,” said Steven.

Beni walked up to Steven, and he bent down to take a closer look. He turned the glass bead on Beni’s necklace over in his fingers, thinking hard about something.

“Where did you get this?” he asked.

“Dunno,” said Beni, “I’ve had it forever.”

“Interesting,” Steven replied, “The coloration looks familiar to me, but I can’t remember where I’ve seen it before. It almost looks like a Mega Stone…”

“A what?” said Mae.

“Nothing,” said Steven, “Don’t mind me, just rambling about rocks as usual.”

“Well, okay,” said Mae.

“If we’re gonna catch up to Team Aqua, we gotta hurry,” said Brendan, “Where did that Maxie guy say they were headed? Mt. Chimney…?”

“Yeah, I think so,” said Mae, “But that’s just Maxie’s opinion, right? We don’t know for sure if–!”

“Actually,” said Steven, “Mt. Chimney is a perfectly logical conclusion if we assume Team Aqua is reenacting the events of four years ago. After Meteor Falls, Team Magma moved to Mt. Chimney to test their machine. Luckily they were thwarted, but if the machine is still there…”

“Right,” said Mae, “Guess we don’t have a choice, then.”

“Yeah,” said Brendan, “Listen, I’m gonna get the professor back to Fallarbor–-can I count on you to get to Mt. Chimney? It’s not too hard to get to from here: just back around Route 113, then down through Firey Path, and then up the cable car.”

“You call _that_ not hard to get to? That’s gonna take _hours!”_

Brendan shrugged.

“The alternative is to go out through Meteor Falls, down through Rustboro, Verdanturf, back over to Mauville, and up north again. Trust me, this way is faster. Besides, Team Aqua probably isn’t gonna get there for a while either. Maybe you can head ‘em off?”

“Yeesh…” Mae wasn’t looking forward to another trek through Route 113, but at least she had a fast bike.

“Good luck, Mae,” said Steven, “I’ll follow as soon as I get my usual team back. For now, though, we’re counting on you.”


	27. The Summit of Mt. Chimney

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mae arrives at Mt. Chimney to find the whole place in disarray.

Even pedaling at top speed, Mae still had a long road ahead. The path back from Meteor Falls wound up and down the rocky crags, finally depositing her into the lush valley of Route 114. From there it was a relatively flat ride back to Fallarbor. She sped past the Pokémon Center–-no time to stop, and her Pokémon were still in good condition–-before barreling into the ashen forest of Route 113. At high speed the falling ash stung her eyes and skin, but she pressed on.

_I don’t even know if they’re gonna be there, but… I can’t just sit here and do nothing!_

All told, by the time Mae reached the foot of Mt. Chimney, a little over two hours had gone by. She practically fell into the cable car station, dragging her bike with her. She decided to sacrifice half a minute to buy some water from a vending machine before putting her bike away and boarding the next cable car.

“The mountain’s pretty popular today,” said the attendant as Mae stepped in, “Even with the high ash warning, we’ve had all sorts of tour groups heading up there. Anyway, please enjoy yourself.”

The doors shut with a clunk, and with a jerking start the cable car began its uphill climb. Mae watched as the station grew smaller and smaller behind her.

_I don’t think those are tour groups…_

* * *

It wasn’t too long before the cable car slowed a bit, pulling into a roofed terminal near the summit of the volcano. Mae could hardly wait for the doors to slide open; she ran past the cable car attendant without even hearing her greeting.

Despite its proximity to the ash-spewing caldera, the weather at the cable car station was surprisingly clear. Winds blowing up from the south sent most of the ash headed back towards Fallarbor. Mae couldn’t help but feel nervous looking at the billowing plume of ash, but her concern was short-lived. The sounds of Pokémon battles reached her ears and reminded her that she had bigger things to worry about.

As she climbed higher, she ran past grunts from Team Aqua battling people wearing red uniforms. From the “M” logo on their hoodies, she guessed that they were Team Magma. That logo seemed familiar to her, even though she was certain this was her first time seeing Magma grunts. Where had she seen it before?

Finally Mae reached a narrow plateau; the rim of the caldera. She could see ash rising up from below, and the heat reached her even from the edge. Ahead of her a man with purple hair faced off against three Team Aqua grunts at once. Near him, another man in red was fighting a battle against the same black-haired woman Mae had fought earlier.

“You’re persistent!” the woman was saying, “Just give it up and lose already!”

“Impudent fool!” said the man in red, “You Aqua curs dare to impede the great Maxie?! I’ll make you regret barring my way!”

“Maxie, this isn’t working!” shouted the purple-haired man, “We’re outnumbered, and their Pokémon have an advantage!”

The purple-haired man had his own Poochyena against three others; Maxie was facing a shark-like Pokémon with his own orange camel Pokémon. It didn’t seem like a fair matchup. Mae had never seen those Pokémon before, but she could guess at their types from looking at them.

“Don’t you dare submit!” cried Maxie, “Do not give these Aqua cretins the satisfaction!”

“Maxie!” shouted Mae, “Do you need help?”

Maxie jumped and turned to look at her. He looked even more frazzled head on, hair messy and glasses slightly askew.

“You… you’re the child from before?” he said.

“Oh, ew! What are _you_ doing here?” said Shelly haughtily, “Did you follow us all the way here from Meteor Falls? Hah, that’s cute. Run along, kiddo, this isn’t a place to play.”

Mae took Electrike’s Pokéball from her bag.

“I’m here for the meteor,” she said, “That’s all.”

“You wanna fight, kid? Get in line,” Shelley grit her teeth, “I’m a little busy teaching four-eyes here what happens when you get in our way!”

“Four-eyes?! I never–!”

“Hey kid, don’t waste your time on Shelly,” said Brodie, “She doesn’t have the meteor anymore. Their leader has it–Archie!”

“Hey! Spoilers!” shouted Shelley.

“Trainer, I’ll have to leave it to you,” said Maxie, “The machine we built-–it’s on a platform overlooking the caldera. Go there and recover the meteorite! I’ll keep this woman busy.”

“What?! No–!” said Shelley, “Kid, you’ll have to go through me and Sharpedo first! I can’t wait to leave that cute face of yours swollen and–!”

“Shelly, darling, it’s rude to cut in line,” said Maxie wryly, “Don’t you have a fight to finish? Camerupt, use take down!”

Shelly reluctantly turned her attention to the battle; her Sharpedo deftly dodged Camerupt’s attack.

“Sharpedo, use aqua jet!”

“Camerupt, take down once more!”

As their battle raged on, Mae snuck past them. Luckily, Shelly was too preoccupied with the battle to notice her.

* * *

The “platform” Maxie had referred to was a nearly supportless structure made of metal and thick glass. Mae stepped onto it cautiously, worried that it would collapse at any moment–-but a sign nearby calmed her fears with an explanation that it was structurally sound.

_This platform, originally built by Team Magma, has been reinforced and repurposed into a unique viewing area.  
_ _Get an up-close look at the molten lava of Mt. Chimney!_

The heat coming off the molten rock could be felt even high above the caldera. Mae felt as though she’d walked into an oven, but she pressed on. She crept across the platform toward the dubious-looking machine at the very edge. It had a glass dome on top, and inside the dome was a chunk of rock that had to be the meteorite Mae was after. Attending the machine was a tall, formidable man in a blue wetsuit. Mae recognized him from the Oceanic Museum a month earlier.

“Now, this thingamajiggy goes here, and this switch should be on…” the man muttered to himself, glancing down at a packet of paper as he went, “If I didn’t have the plans, I’d be having a mighty hard time with this…”

“Hey!” said Mae, “Give that meteor back!”

“Ah!” the man almost dropped the paper in surprise. He looked over at her curiously. “You? Uh… hm…” He seemed to be thinking hard about something, “Oh! I remember where I’ve seen you before! You’re the little scamp who got in our way at Slateport’s museum!”

“That’s me,” said Mae, “Listen, I don’t want any trouble. I just want that meteor back.”

“Don’t want any trouble, huh? Hah!” Archie let out a laugh, “Yet here you are, lookin to stir up just that! If I just hand you the meteor all nice-like, then our plans’d be ruined–and we can’t have _that_ now, can we?”

“What’s this all about?” said Mae, “If you’re all about expanding the sea, what are you doing up here on a volcano, wasting your time with a hunk of rock?”

“Hah! See, there’s somethin’ here you don’t quite get,” said Archie, “I get it–-it doesn’t add up, Team Aqua making such a big fuss on land. But I promise you, this is all part of the grand scheme. Since you made it all the way here, I s’pose I could give you a little hint. See, this meteorite that we got from that nerd back in Fallarbor ain’t just any old meteor. With the right bit of work, it seems we could turn it into a real nice, valuable bit. Like maybe a mega stone, or a key stone… or maybe something even rarer than that!”

“So…?”

“So, if we reverse Team Magma’s machine so that it puts power _into_ the rock instead of takin’ it out-–whoops!” Archie grinned, “Look what I nearly went an’ did! Blabberin all this to a kid… If I give away all my secrets, all the thrill’d be gone from our relationship! I think I’ll just leave you with that for now. It’s not the details that matter any old how.”

Archie walked forward, taking a Pokéball from his belt.

“You may think you’re the good guy here, but from our point of view you’re a meddling kid who’s gotten in our way one time too many. As the leader of Team Aqua, I can’t let you keep settin’ us back. I’m afraid it’s the rope’s end for you and your Pokémon.”

“We’ll see about that,” said Mae. She gripped Electrike’s Pokéball even more tightly.

“Brace yourself, scampo!” roared Archie, “Team Aqua doesn’t play nice! Golbat, all hands on deck!”

“Raiden, you’re up!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This marks the last of the chapters I'd posted on my wordpress. I have the material for a chapter or two beyond this and will likely post that here soon. I'd intended to keep a buffer for updates, but considering I have no blessed idea when I'm going to continue this fic....


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